Postdocs | Berkeley Neuroscience

Neuroscience faculty laboratories host >100 postdoctoral researchers. Postdocs are vital members of our research community, and drive much of the discovery in the department. Below are useful resources for current postdocs. For the additional postdoc resources, please visit the Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute website (link is external).

PROSPECTIVE POSTDOCS

Neuroscience does not have a central application process for Postdoctoral Fellows. Instead, prospective postdocs should contact individual faculty members to inquire about potential openings.

ORIENTATION FOR NEW POSTDOCS

New postdocs should attend an orientation session from the Visiting Scholar and Postdoc Affairs (VSPA) office. These take a half-day and are held monthly. Visit the VSPA website to register for an upcoming orientation

POSTDOC MAILING LIST

Join the Neuroscience Department postdoc email list to receive information about upcoming postdoc events, department seminars, and announcements. Email us at neuroscience@berkeley.edu to be added to the list.

Please note that this list is for internal announcements for postdocs in Neuroscience Department labs only. If you are a postdoc at another institution or in another department, sign up for the Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute (HWNI) newsletter to receive research highlights and info about upcoming neuroscience-related public events.

SLACK WORKSPACE

All postdocs in Neuroscience Department labs are encouraged to join the Slack workspace for connections and scientific communication. Please visit the Contact Information page to request to join the workspace. This is for members of Neuroscience Deparment labs only.

NEUROSCIENCE EVENTS

You are encouraged to attend the weekly Neuroscience Seminar Series, which is co-sponsored by the Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute and the Neuroscience Department. This series brings in nationally and internationally prominent researchers in all areas of neuroscience. An additional seminar series, run by the Neuroscience PhD Program brings student-selected speakers to campus (2-4 speakers per year). Announcements for both series are sent to the postdoc mailing list. These seminars generally take place Thursdays from 3:30-4:45, in 101 Weill Hall.

A broad list of neuroscience research-related events is available on the HWNI Neuroscience Events Calendar. This is available at the HWNI events calendar. To add an event to your bCal, click “Add to my Google calendar (bCal)” on the right side of the screen. Click “Save” on the top of the screen.

OTHER NEURO-RELATED SEMINAR SERIES

Neuroscience seminars are also hosted by a variety of other groups, including the Institute for Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Department of Molecular & Cell Biology, Department of Psychology, Vision Science Graduate Program, and Redwood Center for Theoretical Neuroscience.

Oxyopia (Vision Science)

Monday, 12:00 PM • 489 Minor Hall

Redwood Center Seminar Series (Neuroscience)

Wednesday, 12:00 PM • 560 Evans Hall

Institute for Cognitive and Brain Sciences

Wednesday, 11:00 AM (every other week) • 1102 Berkeley Way West

MULTI-LAB RESEARCH MEETINGS

A variety of specialized, multi-laboratory interest groups and journal clubs exist. If your lab is a member, you should plan on attending. These groups provide opportunities to hear about the latest research from other postdocs, graduate students, and sometimes outside speakers; to gain experience giving research talks; and to deepen your training in cutting-edge science. Ask your faculty mentor or Department Area Head about what groups exist that you can join.

YOUR POSTDOC REPRESENTATIVES

Each Area in the department has a postdoc representative, whose role it is to organize postdoc social events (like monthly coffees), and to advocate for postdoc-related issues at the department level.

The current postdoc reps are: