Applications are now open for the new McDonnell Neuroscience Postdoctoral Fellow Award offered by the McDonnell Center for Systems Neuroscience and the McDonnell Center for Cellular & Molecular Neurobiology. This award offers valuable support for incoming postdocs.
The McDonnell Neuroscience Postdoctoral Fellow Award is a prestigious, two-year program at Washington University that offers a salary supplement as well as funds for relocation expenses, approved travel or personal development activities. The award aims to accelerate fellows’ careers in the field of neuroscience research that falls within the Centers’ overall missions to improve our understanding of the basic mechanisms and integrative functions of the brain and nervous system in health and disease.
Participating Host Laboratories: Fellows may work in any laboratory at Washington University in St. Louis that is willing to fund the base salary (NIH postdoctoral scale) for two years.
Salary Supplement: Labs must provide the base salary and fringe benefit support, and the award will provide a salary supplement of $6,000/year for two years plus fringe benefits on the supplement.
Relocation and Professional Development Award: Fellows each receive up to $10,000 ($5,000/year for two years) to be used for relocation costs, approved travel or professional development activities during their award period such as:
- Travel to professional meetings or lab visits
- Courses or workshops
To apply, the Faculty Mentor should complete the form below and upload the following documents (each separately) where requested:
1. Candidate’s CV.
2. Candidate’s letters of reference (2 required; same as used to apply to the lab).
Applications can be made at any time. The McDonnell Centers guarantee a short turnaround for applications so as not to impede the recruitment process. PIs should note that this will be a highly competitive process and only fellows deemed outstanding will be selected for funding.
Eligibility: At the time of application, fellows must be within the first two years full-time equivalent since the conferral of their PhD and cannot be employed as a staff scientist, senior scientist or instructor. The spirit of the award is to enable the recruitment of new fellows to Washington University, therefore, current employees, fellows and students of Washington University in St. Louis are not eligible for funding, including those fellows that have already been recruited and signed an offer letter. There are no requirements of citizenship or permanent residency status but prospective fellows must meet the criteria for appointment at Washington University.
There is a limit of one fellow per Faculty Mentor. Faculty Mentors must be tenured or tenure-track faculty to apply. The award is not transferrable and all funding must be utilized during the two-year postdoctoral period of training supported by this program.
Awarded fellows must submit a one-page report outlining research progress and any publications arising from the work at the end of two years. In addition, following this report, fellows are asked to notify the Centers of any publications that arose from work during their McDonnell Neuroscience Postdoctoral Fellow Award period.