How Postdoctoral Financial Aid Works

Most people who choose a post-doctoral research position are Ph.D. graduates in the science and engineering fields. A 1995 study by the National Science Foundation found that 41.3 percent of recent U.S. Ph.D. graduates in all science and engineering fields were in postdocs. Physics had the highest rate of recent graduates in postdocs (72.9 percent), and biological sciences had the second-highest (71 percent). While fields like physics, biology and chemistry have the most graduates entering postdocs, more graduates from some other fields have been choosing postdocs, too: In 2001, 18 percent of social science graduates, 17 percent of math and computer science graduates, and 12 percent of engineering graduates entered postdocs, which would have been unheard-of in previous decades [source: NSF/CPST/Professional Societies Workshop].

While most people who earn doctorate degrees will go on to work in their field, the ways to do so are almost limitless. A person with a Ph.D. can teach, do research, work for the government or private industry, or even become a writer in his or her field. The Sigma Xi Survey of 7,600 postdocs found that most were looking for jobs at research universities (85.3 percent), followed by industry jobs (64.7 percent) and government jobs (52.2 percent) [source: Sigma Xi Postdoc Survey]. The research experience you gain during a postdoc is an essential part of building your resume if you want to get a tenure-track position at a research university [source: Trower].

While you should do a postdoc if you want a tenure-track position at a research university or a government research job, some jobs don't require a postdoc. Although it depends on your field of study and the specific job you're looking for, some teaching positions at liberal arts universities, consulting work, or publishing and communications jobs may not require a postdoc. You should discuss your career options in-depth with your faculty advisor early on in your graduate studies. While a postdoc is necessary for some career tracks, it can be an unnecessary expense for others.

Why would a postdoc be considered expensive? The answer is because of the big difference in pay between postdocs and their peers in the outside workplace -- the median salary in 2001 for recent Ph.D. graduates in all fields was $33,000 for postdocs and $62,000 for non-postdocs [source: NSF/CPST/Professional Societies Workshop]. So, while you should consider a postdoc if it's important for your career goals, going straight to the workplace might give you a jumpstart on paying back those student loans.

Just where does the money come from for your postdoc salary? Read on to learn about postdoc funding.

The funding for most postdocs comes from the federal government. The National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) are the largest government agencies that provide money for the support of postdocs. The way this usually works is that a primary investigator (PI), someone who's is a scientist at a university or research facility, applies for a grant from the NIH or the NSF for a specific line of research. The grant award will be for a sum of money that the funding organization will pay to the PI's institution over a specified period of time. A portion of that grant money is for the PI to pay the salaries of technicians, research assistants and postdocs. Under this system, the PI hires a postdoc to work on a research project for a certain number of years and offers him or her a salary package for that time. Most postdocs work in this sort of scenario.

Another way postdocs receive federal funding is through stipends that agencies like the NIH and NSF pay directly to the postdoc, instead of to the university or research lab. The stipends come from competitive fellowships that postdocs apply for, and the postdoctoral fellow can use the money at any research facility willing to sponsor him or her. The most common fellowship of this type is the NIH's National Research Service Award (NRSA). Only about 15 percent of postdocs are paid directly through a fellowship like the NRSA. The stipend levels for these fellowships actually have an impact on all postdocs, however, because most institutions use them as guidance for how much to pay their postdoctoral fellows [source: Committee on Science, Engineering and Public Policy].

Postdoc funding is similar to funding for graduate students, since universities pay a lot of their graduate students stipends from research grants. However, the stipends for graduate students are much lower than those for postdocs: In 2003-2004, the average annual stipend for a graduate teaching assistant was $11,714 [source: Binghamton University Graduate Stipend Survey]. Many graduate students use student loans to supplement their stipends. Graduate students fill out a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and use a combination of grants, scholarships and stipends to pay for their tuition, books and living expenses, while postdocs receive a salary offer and don't fill out a FAFSA.

Are all postdocs created equal? Read on to learn what questions you should ask when applying for a postdoc.

Before you accept a postdoctoral fellowship, you should ask about the salary. While salary should not be the only factor in your decision, you still need to put food on the table while you're building your career. Be sure to ask how long your salary will be guaranteed for; this depends on the length of the grant that your salary comes from. Ask if you'll have the opportunity to apply for more funding, or if you'll be required to apply for your own grants to fund your salary in the future. Postdoc salaries vary depending on your field of study and the type of job, so comparing the offers you get to each other is your best bet. Remember to research the cost of living in the area of the postdoc when you compare salary offers, since some regions are more expensive to live in than others.

Be sure to ask about health insurance benefits, as well. Most postdocs include health insurance for the postdoctoral fellow, and slightly fewer also offer coverage for the postdoc's dependents. Other benefits that some postdoctoral fellowships offer include disability insurance, life insurance, retirement plans, sick leave and paid vacation, and child care [source: Sigma Xi Postdoc Survey]. Think about which benefits are most important to you, and make sure you understand the benefits package before you make your choice.

Research experience can vary wildly between postdoctoral fellowships, and the experience you gain can have a huge impact on the rest of your career. Talk to current and former postdocs about their experiences in the lab, and ask them if they would recommend the lab to a friend. Many people won't offer criticism of their own, but most will give an honest answer if you ask them. Another way to find out about the opportunities postdocs have in a lab is to research the lab's publication history. Were previous fellows the first author on many of the lab's publications? Finding out will help give you a good understanding of the research opportunities available to postdocs in that lab.

Since a major purpose of a postdoctoral fellowship is to make important professional contacts, it's a good idea to find out what kind of networking opportunities you'll have. Find out if your lab will sponsor your membership in important professional organizations and your participation in conferences. Some research groups will pay for you to travel to conferences, while others will not.

Choosing the right postdoctoral fellowship will help send you on your way to a lucrative, productive career. For lots more information on paying for school, see the links on the next page.