NSF, NIH Emphasize the Importance of Mentoring
Like apprentices in other fields, U.S. postdocs work for peanuts and are discouraged from pursuing their own ideas in return for the chance to learn the profession. But supervisors must also hold up their end of the bargain by being good mentors. That's what two key science agencies have reminded investigators this month in policy directives that emphasize their role in helping postdocs grow into independent researchers.
The message is tucked into the newly enacted America COMPETES Act (Science, 10 August, p. 736). It requires researchers to include a mentoring plan in every grant application to the National Science Foundation (NSF). It's also contained in a statement issued by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) clarifying that its grantees may use some of their time to mentor postdocs and students. Both make it clear to universities that "postdocs are not just to be treated like workers," says Alyson Reed, executive director of the National Postdoctoral Association (NPA) in Washington, D.C.
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