VARI places 3rd nationwide in The Scientist’s 2011 poll of postdoctoral fellows
Grand Rapids, Mich. (March 2, 2011) – Van Andel Research Institute (VARI) was named Tuesday by the life sciences magazine The Scientist, as one of the top three Best Places to Work for Postdocs in the nation, in its 9th annual survey.
Only the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, both of Massachusetts, ranked higher. VARI ranked fifteenth nationally in the 2009 poll of postdoctoral fellows, and last year finished third in The Scientist’s 2010 Best Places to Work in Academia survey.
The survey invited readers who identified themselves as “non-tenured life scientists working in academia or other non-commercial research institutions” to rank their working environment by indicating their level of agreement with 38 criteria in 9 different areas. The survey included results from nearly 2,900 respondents, and a total of 93 institutions (76 U.S. and 17 international) were included in the rankings. The results are published in the March 2011 issue of The Scientist.
"The postdoctoral years are extremely important in helping young scientists mature into competent lab leaders," said The Scientist's Associate Editor Jef Akst, who oversees the Best Places surveys. "Our survey provides information about both the strengths and the weaknesses of institutions in training Ph.D.s for that transition - straight from the postdocs themselves."
“This award is another indication of both the high quality of the research and the value of the research experience at VARI,” said VAI Chairman and CEO David Van Andel. “When our postdocs finish their work at VARI, they are well prepared to start their own labs and to embark on successful and life-changing research careers of their own.”
The survey ranked institutions in the areas of Quality of Training and Mentoring, Career Development Opportunities and Networking, Quality of Communication, Value of the Postdoc Experience, Quality of Facilities and Infrastructure, Funding, Equity, Pay and Benefits, and Family and Personal Life. VARI scored especially high in the areas of Communication and Family and Personal Life.
“Receiving this recognition reaffirms the value of our program and the dedication of the scientific staff to mentoring young researchers,” said VARI Associate Professor Cindy Miranti, Ph.D., Chairman of the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs.
“VARI’s open laboratory environment offers a close working relationship between postdocs and mentors, as well as a variety of intellectual interactions between postdocs, students, and staff,” said Miranti. “In addition, we provide the postdocs with the opportunity to host scientific and career development activities through an active Postdoctoral Fellow Association. These activities include training, seminars, and workshops that provide an array of skill sets that extend beyond the day to day work in the laboratory.”
For many postdocs, a new research environment is only the first of many challenges. International postdocs must often adapt to a new culture, language and set of immigration laws. More than half of VARI’s recent postdocs received their doctorates abroad. A 2005 survey of more than 7,000 postdocs found that 54% of postdocs hold temporary U.S. visas and of these more than 76% received their doctorates abroad.
“Our laboratories reflect the international collaboration that is at the heart of 21st century biomedical research,” said VAI Vice President of Communications and External Relations Joe Gavan. “With postdocs and scientific staff representing more than 20 nations, I think that it is important that we provide the kind of support that allows them to feel comfortable in a new environment and get right to work on their research.”
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About Van Andel Institute
Established by Jay and Betty Van Andel in 1996, Van Andel Institute (VAI) is an independent research and educational organization based in Grand Rapids, Mich., dedicated to preserving, enhancing and expanding the frontiers of medical science, and to achieving excellence in education by probing fundamental issues of education and the learning process. Van Andel Education Institute (VAEI) is dedicated to strengthening science education and preparing and motivating individuals to pursue science or science-related professions. Van Andel Research Institute (VARI), the research arm of VAI, is dedicated to probing the genetic, cellular and molecular origins of cancer, Parkinson’s and other diseases and working to translate those findings into effective therapies. This is accomplished through the work of over 200 researchers in 18 on-site laboratories and in collaborative partnerships that span the globe. VARI is affiliated with the Translational Genomics Research Institute, (TGen), of Phoenix, Arizona.
Top 15 US Institutions:
- Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, Cambridge, MA
- Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, MA
- Van Andel Research Institute, Grand Rapids, MI
- Argonne National Laboratory, IL
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Cambridge, MA
- Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation
- The J. David Gladstone Institutes, San Francisco, CA
- Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, PA
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA
- Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN
- Emory University, Atlanta, GA
- US Environmental Protection Agency
- University of California, San Francisco, CA
- National Cancer Institute, Bethesda/Frederick, MD
- Institute for Systems Biology, Seattle, WA
Top 10 International Institutions:
- University College London, United Kingdom
- Novartis International, multinational
- Biotechnology Center TU Dresden (BIOTEC), Germany
- Max Planck Institute, Germany
- University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
- Center for Regenerative Therapies, Dresden, Germany
- University of Dundee, Scotland
- MRC National Institute for Medical Research, London, United Kingdom
- Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciencia, Oeiras, Portugal
- Nederlands Kanker Instituut, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
