Applications are being accepted through Nov. 1 for the U-M President’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program, now in its seventh year.
The fellowship supports exceptional scholars in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, economics and political science who will contribute to diversity and equal opportunity in higher education and have the potential to become faculty members at U-M.
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Two of the sixth group of postdoctoral scholars selected for the program have already begun their positions: Brian Beckford and Robin Brewer.
Beckford, who received a Ph.D. in physics from Tohoku University, is working on the KOTO experiment conducted at the J-PARC facility in Tokai, Japan. The objective of the KOTO experiment is to better understand why we live in a matter-dominated universe. He works with Myron Campbell, professor of physics.
Brewer, who received a Ph.D. in human-computer interaction at Northwestern University, focuses on the intersection of accessibility and online communities, designing and developing online communities that are both accessible and meaningful to older adults and people with disabilities. She works with Nicole Ellison, professor of information.
Additionally, one other fellow will be joining in the winter term: André Green. Green, who received a Ph.D. in life sciences from Harvard University, is working on how functional complexity emerges across different scales of biological organization, from molecules and cells to organisms, and populations.
He is currently working to establish the monarch butterfly as a model to study the molecular genetic ‘design’ of migration and understand how this design influences evolution of the migration strategy. He works with Patricia Wittkopp, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology.
The President’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program was created in collaboration with the University of California. It combines funding (salary, benefits and research support) with faculty mentoring, professional development and networking opportunities.
Applicants may apply to either or both of the California and U-M programs. Selections are made by independent committees, one on each campus. The program at U-M has attracted an exceptionally strong group of candidates each year.
Each candidate is expected to identify a faculty member who has been contacted in advance of the application and is willing to serve as a mentor. Faculty members are encouraged to identify emerging scholars who would be appropriate for the program.
The president and the provost have committed funds for postdoctoral support, and also for tenure-track positions for successful postdoctoral fellows who are subsequently recruited to tenure-track faculty positions at U-M. Eight former fellows currently are assistant professors at U-M.
