Important
Please carefully review the information entered prior to submitting the letter request. Letters and AdobeSign workflow are populated automatically with the information you provide, exactly as it is entered on this form.
The OPE uses this form for departments to demonstrate sustained funding for trainees. The forms will continue to be uploaded with the letter request. We are moving these forms to Adobe Sign. If you do not know who the appropriate approver is for your department/division, please contact the department administrator or your Dean’s Office.
Important: If the postdoc is to be appointed in the Heersink School of Medicine, please us the Postdoc Approval Form: Medicine form.
If you are the form filler and the department approver, you will complete the form, “Submit,” and enter your email as the assigned next participant.
The Office of Postdoctoral Education (OPE) provides resources to assist you in appointing postdoctoral scholars and the establishment of the terms and conditions for the position offer. Below are some important points to consider in making the appointment. These may be helpful in avoiding misunderstandings during the training period.
- Postdoctoral scholars have terms and conditions they are entitled to according to UAB policy. These include vacation, UAB minimum salary, and maternity/paternity leave.
- At the time an offer is made, the resources must be available for both the salary and training requirements for the period of the appointment (one year).
- Appointments are for one year and may be renewable annually for up to an additional three years upon written agreement between the mentor and the postdoc.
- The appointment letter should include a description of performance expectations, responsibilities, and position requirements.
- If the mentor does not intend to re-appoint the postdoc for another year, the mentor must notify the postdoc in writing three months prior to the re-appointment date.
- The primary purpose for a postdoctoral position is for training. You are encouraged early in the appointment to establish performance benchmarks, monitor progress, and keep records on a regular basis. Formal feedback is appropriate in a training environment. If problems do arise, it is important to document these together with any corrective action you have instituted.
- The OPE offers outstanding postdoctoral candidates a salary enhancement award twice yearly, on a competitive basis, known as the Career Enhancement Award.
The UAB Council on Postdoctoral Education (COPE) is committed to thoroughly examining all issues related to postdoctoral education. As such, the central goal of COPE is two-fold:
- to improve the environment for postdoctoral training; and
- to facilitate the retention and recruitment of high quality postdoctoral scholars at UAB.
Primary Function
The primary function of COPE is to provide guidance to the Office of Postdoctoral Education on all matters related to postdoctoral training and recruitment.
Approval Responsibilities
COPE is responsible for approving postdoc-related elements, including but not limited to:
- Training requirements (term length, leave)
- Minimum stipend level
- Career-development funding mechanisms
COPE Membership
In addition to the Senior Associate Dean of Graduate and Postdoctoral Affairs and the Dean of the Graduate School, COPE will include representatives from UAB Schools that train postdoctoral scholars; these representatives are to be nominated and determined by a faculty vote. In addition, representatives from administrative offices that facilitate postdoctoral training as well as the Executive Board of the UAB Postdoctoral Association will serve as COPE members.
|
SCHOOL / UNIT |
NUMBER OF REPRESENTATIVES |
VOTING / NON-VOTING |
|---|---|---|
|
UAB Postdoctoral Association |
2 |
voting |
|
Business |
1 |
voting |
|
College of Arts and Sciences* |
1 |
voting |
|
Dentistry |
1 |
voting |
|
Education* |
1 |
voting |
|
Engineering |
1 |
voting |
|
Health Professions* |
1 |
voting |
|
Joint Health Sciences |
2 |
voting |
|
Medicine* |
2 |
voting |
|
Nursing |
1 |
voting |
|
Optometry* |
1 |
voting |
|
Public Health |
1 |
voting |
|
Disability Support Services |
1 |
non-voting |
|
Institutional Student Services |
1 |
non-voting |
|
Libraries |
1 |
non-voting |
|
Office of Access and Engagement |
1 |
non-voting |
|
Ombudsperson |
1 |
non-voting |
|
Professional Development Program |
1 |
non-voting |
|
Student Health/Wellness |
1 |
non-voting |
*COPE representatives to these schools will serve three-year terms for the initial term only.
Role of a COPE Member
It is intended that all COPE members:
- Serve a renewable two year term
- Attend and participate in biannual COPE meetings
- Serve on COPE sub-committees as needed
If a COPE member is not able to fulfill this role, a replacement will be appointed by the appropriate supervisor.
COPE Meetings: Schedule and Agenda
Meeting will be held biannually in the Spring and Fall. Emails will be sent to each COPE member at a time one month before the scheduled meeting; a reminder will be sent one week prior to the meeting. An agenda will be drafted by the Associate Dean for Postdoctoral Education and distributed in the reminder email. Any COPE member may make additions to the agenda prior to the scheduled meeting.
Appointment Request Forms
Appointment Request Instructions
Termination Forms
Termination Form Instructions
Remediation Forms
Remediation Form Instructions
Postdoctoral scholars are appointed for one year periods. They must be reappointed every year on their anniversary date if they continue in training.
Approval Forms and Offer Letters
The departmental must first complete and sign the Approval Request Form for Hire to document that funding for support of the reappointed postdoc are in place.
Once completed and signed, the form should be uploaded with the offer letter request. No letters of offer will be prepared without receipt of the Postdoc Approval form. The department personnel representative or mentor will notify the OPE that a reappointment letter should be generated through the OPE during the month prior to the yearly end date. The reappointment letter will be signed by the Associate Dean of the Office of Postdoctoral Education, the mentor, and the postdoctoral scholar.
Individual Development Plans (IDPs)
An IDP is rquired to be drafted within the first 30 days of an appointment. You and your trainee must draft the IDP together. It will state expectations for your trainee's research project as well as describe their career goals and objectives. A copy must be forwarded to the OPE for documentation.- Three months following the drafting of the IDP, you will meet with your trainee to formally review progress with regard to the research training. If you determine that your trainee requires remediation and/or additional training in order to successfully perform the research project, a three month probationary period will begin. If research performance has not improved and/or if there is a lack of research progress as defined in the IDP following the probationary period or at any other time thereafter prior to the appointment end date, the appointment may be terminated with one month’s notice.
- Please note that, per the UAB Attendance Policy, three consecutive absences without approval from the mentor at any time during the appointment may initiate the termination process. Further, if termination is based upon either academic or non-academic misconduct, advance notice of termination may be waived. All cases of possible early termination must be discussed with the Senior Associate Dean for Graduate and Postdoctoral Affairs prior to termination.
Ending an Appointment
If the mentor does not intend to reappoint the postdoc for another year, the mentor must notify the postdoc in writing three months prior to the reappointment date. Following the first year of the appointment and in subsequent years, if a postdoc is not to be reappointed, a minimum of three months' notice prior to the appointment end date must be given to the postdoc in writing by the mentor. The notice starts from a mutually agreed upon date. Send the notice to the OPE for documentation (unless the trainee went through a remediation plan).
One of the key elements to a successful postdoctoral appointment is a clear understanding of the operations and procedures that govern the postdoctoral appointment at UAB.
With this objective in mind, the OPE provides a variety of resources and tools to aid mentors and administrators at each stage of a postdoc’s appointment. These resources include information for the appointment process, benefits, compensation, and mentoring services.
The Office of Postdoctoral Education (OPE) provides mentors with information to assist in the appointment of postdoctoral scholars and the establishment of the terms and conditions for the position offer.
The OPE is here to help you, so please do not hesitate to contact us should questions arise.
Below are important considerations for you to consider during the appointment process.
- Terms and Conditions of Appointment. The terms and conditions of a postdoc appointment at UAB include vacation, UAB minimum salary, and maternity/paternity leave. Postdocs are entitled to these benefits according to UAB policy. Learn more about postdoc benefits.
- Heersink School of Medicine Hiring Approval. For scholars appointied in HSOM, a completed Hiring Approval Form is required in order to request an appointment letter to demonstrate the resources are available for both the salary and training requirements for the period of the appointment (one year).
- Individual Development Plan (IDP). An individual development plan (IDP) is rquired to be drafted within the first 30 days of an appointmen. The IDP will state expectations for your trainee's research project as well as describe their career goals and objectives. A copy must be forwarded to the OPE for documentation.
- Three months following the drafting of the IDP, you will meet with your trainee to formally review progress with regard to the research training. If you determine that your trainee requires remediation and/or additional training in order to successfully perform the research project, a three month probationary period will begin. If research performance has not improved and/or if there is a lack of research progress as defined in the IDP following the probationary period or at any other time thereafter prior to the appointment end date, the appointment may be terminated with one month’s notice.
- Please note that, per the UAB Attendance Policy, three consecutive absences without approval from the mentor at any time during the appointment may initiate the termination process. Further, if termination is based upon either academic or non-academic misconduct, advance notice of termination may be waived. All cases of possible early termination must be discussed with the Senior Associate Dean for Graduate and Postdoctoral Affairs prior to termination.
- Request an Appointment/Reappointment Letter. The appointment letter should include a description of performance expectations, responsibilities, and position requirements.
All the following steps must be completed for the appointment process to be finalized in the Office of Postdoctoral Education (OPE).
1. Appointment Letter
All postdoctoral appointments and re-appointments are coordinated through the OPE.
STEP 1: The departmental must first complete and sign the Approval Request Form for Hire to document that funding for support of the new hire is in place. Once completed and signed, the form should be uploaded with the appointment letter request.
STEP 2: The departmental administrator or faculty mentor will submit the information needed for the detailed appointment letter. This information will be printed on OPE letterhead, signed by the Senior Associate Dean, sent to the mentor for his/her signature, and then forwarded to the postdoc applicant. In some cases, the appointment letter needs to be sent several weeks or months prior to the actual starting date (for example, to begin the visa process) and will specify the following:
- postdoc's name, degree, and mailing address
- department or division to which the postdoc is assigned
- effective date of appointment and if renewable for up to three years
- duration of appointment and possibility of re-appointment
- mentor's name, degree, and title
- annual award/stipend amount
- a description of research activities and expectations in which the postdoc will be involved and the qualifications needed by the postdoc to complete these activities
Mentors may agree but are not required to provide relocation support to postdoctoral scholars as a part of a recruitment package. If mentors decide to support postdoctoral scholars by providing additional resources, the following must be stated explicitly in the position offer letter.
Postdoctoral 21 (employee)
- "As a part of your start up package, you will receive an incentive of $ . This incentive is subject to tax withholdings and will be included through your next direct deposit."
Postdoctoral 20 (trainee)
- "As a part of your start up package, you will receive an additional award of $ . This additional award is subject to federal tax reporting and will be included through your next direct deposit."
Once the postdoctoral scholar is hired, an ACT document will need to be created with the document reason of Nonrecurring Element. The element is "Trainee 1T" for Postdoctoral Trainees (Status 20) and "Start-Up 1T" for Postdoctoral Employee (Status 21).
An accepted offer is signified by the postdoctoral scholar's signature with a copy of the signed letter kept in the OPE. The department will keep the original letters.
International Candidates: If the prospective scholar will need assistance in entering the USA, the department will contact UAB's International Scholar and Student Services opens a new website (ISSS) when the letter of offer is ready to be mailed. ISSS will process visa information and forward to the postdoc.
2. Mentor Letter
This letter informs the mentor of their duties to the incoming postdoctoral scholar, and by signing the Mentor Letter, the faculty member acknowledges the conditions of hiring and training a postdoc at UAB.
Signed copies of both the letter of offer and the mentor letter should be forwarded to the department administrator or to the mentor, who should provide copies to OPE.
3. Proof of Degree
The appointment letter states that the appointment is contingent upon receipt of written confirmation that a terminal degree has been awarded. Proof of the degree is required by the appointment date. Proof of degree can be a transcript showing the awarding of the degree, an actual copy of the degree, or statement of completion, translated into English if necessary.
If the terminal degree has not yet been awarded at the time of appointment, but all requirements have been completed leading to the award, a letter can be submitted from the Graduate School or director of the degree program confirming that the degree is forthcoming.
Appointment to the UAB system will not be finalized until proof of degree is received by OPE.
4. Copy of Curriculum Vitae
An up-to-date copy of the curriculum vitae is required at the time of appointment for our files.
5. Departmental Personnel Officer
The postdoc should also contact their departmental personnel officer as soon as possible after their arrival. The personnel officer will also need additional documents completed in order to process the postdoc's appointment into the UAB system. The OPE will schedule the postdoc's orientation session with HR Training and Development.