Postdoctoral Community
Fellowships
Welcome to the Department of Cell & Developmental Biology! We are glad that you are interested in our department for post-doctoral studies. Post-doctoral scholars in the Department of Cell & Developmental Biology have access to cutting-edge technologies, world-class scientists, and thorough career training. Research interests of our faculty, span from molecular cell biology to organogenesis. We invite you to contact our faculty members directly (http://www.mc.vanderbilt.edu/cdb/faculty-reasearch) to discuss your specific research interests as a post-doctoral scholar. Outside the lab, post-doctoral scholars are invited to develop presentation skills through participation in journal clubs and research-in-progress seminars. You will also have excellent opportunities to network with other scientists at departmental retreats and other events.
There are no teaching requirements for post-doctoral scholars at Vanderbilt, though if you are interested in this aspect of training, excellent resources are available through:
- The Center for Teaching (http://www.vanderbilt.edu/cft/)
- The Office of Career Development (http://bret.mc.vanderbilt.edu/career_development/)
- TheScientist-Educator
Program (https://medschool.mc.vanderbilt.edu/scientist_educator/)
In addition, all post-doctoral scholars within the Department of Cell & Developmental biology have access to excellent career preparation resources (http://bret.mc.vanderbilt.edu/career_development/) and are members of Vanderbilt’s Post-Doctoral Association (http://bret.mc.vanderbilt.edu/postdoc/). They provide tools for campus-wide networking, re-location resources for moving to Nashville, and long-term career planning.
Thank you for your interest in post-doctoral studies in the Department of Cell & Developmental Biology.
Meet CDB Postdocs - Q & A
Elizabeth T. Ables, Ph.D.
Daniela Drummond-Barbosa lab
Your project in ten words or less: Steroid hormone control of Drosophila oogenesis
Prior education: St. Andrews Presbyterian College, Laurinburg, NC (1999, B.S. Biology), University of North Carolina at Wilmington, Wilmington, NC (2001, M.S. Biology), Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN (2007, Ph.D. Molecular Physiology & Biophysics)
What is your favorite thing about being a post-doc in the CDB department? I really appreciate how helpful and collaborative the department is -- I have often received small aliquots of reagents from other labs to test on my own samples, so that I didn't have to waste money on an idea that didn't work!
What is your favorite CDB memory? bowling with other CDB members and their families at the 2007 Christmas Party
Advice to incoming graduate students/post-docs: (1) Reach out to other grad students/post-docs in the department as much as possible -- even if they don't work on your particular project or model organism, you can often learn new tips on experimental strategies (like molecular cloning, for example) that are common across disciplines.
(2) Make every attempt to practice your public speaking/teaching skills for presentations, lectures, etc. -- there are lots of opportunities available, and your skills will improve every time you give a seminar.
Future career plans/goals: As a Drosophila investigator, my research is very amenable to both classroom demonstrations and graduate-type research projects. So after my post-doc, I would like to incorporate undergraduate/graduate teaching with research in my own lab.
Tim Bolger, Ph.D.
Susan Wente lab
Your project in ten words or less: Functional coupling of mRNA export and translation
Prior education: A.B., Harvard; Ph.D. Duke
What is your favorite thing about being a post-doc in the CDB department? Everyone I have interacted with has been friendly and helpful.
Describe your experience as a post-doc in the CDB dept in three words: hard work but good times (okay that's 5)
What is your favorite CDB memory? Abel Alcazar-Roman giving a talk at the retreat, explaining why mRNA export is important in development. Shows an image of a mouse (this is with proper RNA export), shows a blank square (this is without export).
Advice to incoming graduate students/post-docs: work hard but get out of the lab every once in a while
Future career plans/goals: academia, hopefully.
Raj Nambiar, Ph.D.
Matt Tyska lab
Your project in ten words or less: Studying class I myosin function using biophysical tools.
Prior education: Ph.D. in Biophysics and Biomedical Engineering from U. of Michigan, Ann Arbor
What is your favorite thing about being a post-doc in the CDB department? My PI/lab members
Describe your experience as a post-doc in the CDB dept in three words: Pretty neat overall
Advice to incoming graduate students/post-docs: Read these: www.phdcomics.com. You are not alone!
Future career plans/goals: Research/academia