If you're considering doing postdoctoral work at MCW, the first thing you need to recognize is that we are not the school with the football team - that's the University of Wisconsin in Madison. MCW is a private, free-standing educational and research institution located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin close to Lake Michigan.
Approximately 160 postdoctoral fellows are currently continuing their research training at MCW. The Scientist ranked MCW in the top ten institutions for postdoctoral training for the last three years. This year MCW was ranked 5th among Academic Institutions (The Scientist 18:17-19, 2004). Some of the reasons are captured in the following list of "Top Ten Reasons to do a Postdoctoral Fellowship at MCW," compiled by the Postdoctoral Advisory Committee.
The Office of Postdoctoral Education The Office of Postdoctoral Education (OPE) was inaugurated in July 2001 with the mission of being an advocate and resource for MCW postdoctoral fellows. Since its inception, OPE has raised awareness of the important contributions made by these talented individuals and enhanced their educational opportunities. Since fellows already receive high quality scientific training from MCW faculty, there has been a committed effort by OPE to address career development issues. This has been accomplished through a highly successful seminar series called the Spotlight on Science, by purchasing a core collection of resources on the topic of career planning for the library, and by providing useful information on our website.
Several OPE activities are designed to engender a sense of belonging and collegiality. A packet of resource information about life in Milwaukee as well as a welcoming luncheon with 2-3 senior postdoctoral fellows is arranged for all new postdoctoral fellows during their first month at MCW. The Research Days Poster Session highlights the individual research contributions of postdoctoral fellows and allows them to interact with each other and MCW faculty who attend. Social gatherings such as a holiday party and summer picnic provide additional networking opportunities. An annual Town Hall Meeting permits fellows to provide feedback and suggestions for new initiatives.
Two recent OPE initiatives have been the development of a Postdoctoral Travel Award, which bestows partial support to attend an important scientific conference for ten postdoctoral fellows per year, and offering of two courses for improvement of grammar and writing skills.