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The Graduate School is responsible for campus administration of the Office of Postdoctoral Education at the University of Missouri.

Prospective Postdocs

Prestigious Postdoctoral Programs
Responsibilities of Departments & Programs
Responsibilities of Postdoctoral Scholars
FAQ

Prestigious Postdoctoral Programs

Unfortunately, due to budgetary constraints, we are pausing the call for applications for the 2025 Preparing Future Faculty for Inclusive Excellence (PFFIE) Postdoctoral Program. As a result, there will be no call for applications or review process during the 2024-2025 cycle.

The PFF Postdoctoral Program provides teaching and/or research and professional development opportunities for postdoctoral scholars. The program allows postdoctoral scholars opportunities to participate in mentored training and prepare them for their careers. Read about the programs below:

The Preparing Future Faculty for Inclusive Excellence (PFFIE) Postdoctoral Program is designed to promote and develop scholars for tenure-track faculty positions at the University of Missouri or elsewhere, in any discipline. Applicants should demonstrate how they can contribute to faculty diversity, such as through membership in a group that is historically underrepresented in a particular discipline or through other training or experience. The fellowships are for 2 years, during which time the scholars focus on scholarship and participate in professional development activities that integrate and expose them to the faculty experience. Click here for more information.

Email Dr. Valli Sarveswaran at postdoc@missouri.edu if you have any questions about the PFFIE postdoctoral program.

The MU Research Excellence Program (REP) enhances the university’s research mission by providing funding to high-performing faculty to hire postdoctoral scholars to further research productivity and advance postdoctoral scholar careers.

MU Faculty are competitively selected to be REP Faculty Scholars and participate in a call to hire REP Postdocs. The REP Faculty Scholar serves as the REP Postdoc’s research sponsor and mentor. REP Postdocs are provided with a competitive salary and professional development funds. Click here for more information.

Email Dr. Valli Sarveswaran at postdoc@missouri.edu if you have any questions about the REP program.

Role of Departments & Programs

Issues pertaining to specific terms of appointment, position requirements or limitations not specifically covered in this policy statement are the responsibility of the faculty mentor and appointing department. Departments can, and are encouraged to, develop their own policies and programs for postdoctoral trainees that may be more comprehensive than those described within campus policies.

Responsibilities of Postdoctoral Scholars

Appointment as a postdoctoral scholar imposes responsibilities on the trainee to the mentor, laboratory colleagues, the department with which they are affiliated, the university, and the agency that supports them.

These responsibilities include:

  • Conscientious discharge of research responsibilities.
  • Conformance to ethical standards in research.
  • Compliance with good laboratory practices.
  • Maintenance of laboratory notebooks and/or other records of research activity.
  • Adherence to university and departmental standards and policies regarding the use of isotopes, chemicals, infectious agents, research animals, human subjects as well as other policies regarding workplace safety.
  • Initiation of open and timely discussions with the mentor regarding all facets of research.
  • Prompt disclosure of information to the mentor regarding the possession of and/or intent to distribute materials, reagents, software, copyright-able and potentially patent-able discoveries derived from the research.
  • Collegiate conduct toward members of the research laboratory and others.
  • Compliance with all applicable university policies and the terms of the sponsoring agency’s grant, contract or fellowship stipulations.

Teaching postdoctoral scholars may or may not have some research responsibilities. If so, their research responsibilities should be consistent with those listed above.

In addition, teaching postdoctoral scholars will be responsible for teaching credit-generating courses and other responsibilities may also include:

  • Student Advising
  • Student Mentoring
  • Course Development

Frequently Asked Questions

Currently, our office is administering the following postdoctoral program. Click on the link below for more information. Our office does not collect application materials.

There are other postdoc opportunities that our office does not administer. For those opportunities, you have the following options.

  1. Search for postdoctoral positions on the University jobs website. You can search “postdoctoral” and look through the results to see what might be a match for you.
  2. Identify the relevant college/school here to explore academic programs or faculty members and directly email faculty whose research is a good match with your own research program. Some faculty members may have funding for postdoctoral fellows but haven’t posted a job yet, thus it is good to directly contact the faculty member you are interested in working with and not just rely on our job database.
  3. Postdoc Portal:
    • Advanced graduate students and postdocs from any college, university or research laboratory begin by creating a postdoc profile including biographical information; statements of research, diversity and mentoring; a short CV; and up to 4 research interest areas.
    • Faculty job postings and postdoc fellowships can be posted by faculty, researchers or administrators without needing to first create a research group profile.
    • With an account and a submitted profile, users are automatically matched to all the profiles, fellowships, and job postings, based on shared areas of research interest. Users can also browse and search though all postings in the Portal.

US$47,476 

Yes, often postdocs negotiate salaries before they accept the position. 

Yes. It is the supervising faculty member’s or the unit’s decision whether or not to include moving allowances. 

  1. Postdoctoral scholars who are hired as benefit-eligible employees at the University of Missouri can purchase health, dental, & vision insurance. 
  1. Benefit Eligible employees work over 30 hours per week in non-student positions for which the university pays the salary. 
  1. See more here.  

Yes – if their dependents move to the United States for the foreseeable future (i.e. they are not just visiting for a few months). 

Yes, you have the option to contribute.

Yes, the university matches up to 8% of your contribution. 

Yes. An individual can be hired as a postdoctoral scholar for up to 5 years. This does not account for any previous experience as a postdoctoral scholar. 

Yes, at least 70% of the postdoctoral scholars are international scholars. 

Most of the international postdoctoral scholars are on either F-1 OPT or J-1. The university also sponsors H-1b visas. If you are eligible for other visa categories (e.g., TN visa), let the hiring faculty member or the unit know. 

Whenever an international candidate is hired, the dependents are eligible to apply for the derivative dependents status. But usually, the financial burden is on the candidate, and not the hiring department.  

The university does not have any properties to rent for postdoctoral scholars. However, there are plenty of affordable options available from the city of Columbia.