Postdoctoral Appointments

A postdoctoral appointment by an academic department or an organized research unit (ORU) is designed to give individuals who have received a doctoral degree within the past five years an opportunity to conduct research under the guidance of a faculty mentor.

Issues regarding postdoctoral appointments are often complex, especially if the appointee is coming from another country. All questions regarding postdoctoral appointments should be directed to the Visiting Scholar and Postdoctoral Program Coordinator in the Sponsored Projects Office (http://www.spo.berkeley.edu).

There are three categories of postdoctoral appointments at UC Berkeley. The categories differ with respect to compensation, benefits, taxation, and retirement. The source of support determines the category. Changing an appointment from one category to another will result in a change of benefits, including the possible loss of health insurance coverage.

Visiting Postdoctoral Appointees are supported by a faculty mentor’s research grants or contracts and are paid a salary. Appointments in this category are considered temporary employees of the University and are eligible for limited benefits that include University-paid employee health insurance.
Visiting Stipend Postdoctoral Fellows are not considered employees of the University. They are supported by fellowships administered through the University on behalf of the fellow or the fellow’s faculty mentor. Appointments in this category are paid a stipend, not a salary. Stipend appointees are required to have health insurance, which can be obtained through a special program administered by UC Berkeley.
Visiting Research Fellows are honorary appointees. They are not employees of the University, receive no compensation through the University, are not eligible for University-paid benefits, and are not eligible for the special UC Berkeley health insurance program. These fellows bring their own funding to the campus and are usually compensated directly through a fellowship or other funds from an external sponsor.

All postdoctoral appointments must be in writing, clearly stating the length of the appointment, the amount of annual compensation, the category of postdoctoral appointment being offered, and the relevant information regarding benefits associated with the offer. Appointments must be for a minimum of six months, with a maximum of five years, including previous postdoctoral experience at other institutions. UC Berkeley has a minimum compensation policy.

Exceptions to the five-year limit and/or exceptions to less than full-time appointments must be approved by the cognizant dean and reported to the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research (http://research.chance.berkeley.edu/ . When a postdoctoral appointment is approved for less than 100 percent time, the faculty mentor (principal investigator) must inform the appointee in writing that he/she is only required to work the percent of time of the appointment.