One key way we stay abreast of the needs and issues facing postdocs at RCSI is through our postdoctoral representatives and Postdoc Society (formed in October 2020). You can connect with them by joining the postdoctoral mailing list, joining the PostDoc Society space on Workvivo, and following PostdocRcsi on Twitter. If you would like to join the postdoc mailing list please send an email to the IT helpdesk (helpdesk@rcsi.ie) and ask them to add you to the “Post-Doctoral Researchers” mailing list.
Postdoctoral representatives
The representatives (reps) are elected members from the RCSI postdoctoral community, who act as a bridge between RCSI management and postdoctoral researchers. They are conduits for information from and to the wider college as they sit on various committees and liaise with different departments such as the School of Postgraduate Studies, the Office of Research and Innovation (ORI) and Human Resources (HR).
The current elected postdoc representatives are:
Petra Jagušt, Department of Surgery (left)
After obtaining her BSc and MSc in Molecular Biology at the University of Zagreb and PhD at Barts Cancer Institute in London, Petra joined Surgery Department at RCSI as a postdoc in Prof Young’s laboratory in 2019. Her postdoc project focused on understanding the biology of brain metastatic breast cancer using cutting-edge 3D preclinical models. Thus far Petra has worked on various translational projects and cancer types, deciphering metabolic and molecular drivers of cancer progression and metastases with the goal to develop new therapeutic approaches. Currently, as an SFI RD&I Fellow on secondment at an Irish biotech company Remedy Biologics, Petra is exploring the tumour immune microenvironment and its role in driving immunotherapy response in order to develop more successful adoptive T-cell therapy for breast cancer patients.
Melissa Sharp, Department of General Practice (right)
Melissa joined RCSI in 2020 after completing a joint doctorate in Epidemiology from the University of Paris and University of Split, as a part of the Methods in Research on Research (MiRoR) Project, an international consortium dedicated to reducing waste in research. She also holds a Masters in Public Health in Epidemiology from Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Michigan State University. She is based in the Department of Public Health and Epidemiology and works on evidence synthesis and clinical guidelines in collaboration with the Health Information Quality Authority.
Postdoc Society
Founded in 2020 and led by the postdoc representatives, the Society was created with the aim of enhancing postdoctoral researcher collaboration across the College and improve their experience as people and as researchers at RCSI. The Society aims to accomplish its purpose through the following activities:
- Improve the personal and professional development of postdoctoral researchers by organising workshops and trainings of interest for the postdoc community
- Represent the interests of postdoctoral researchers by engagement in working groups internal and external to RCSI
- Promote collaboration and sharing of experience and ideas among postdoctoral researchers through the creation of social media pages, forums and social events
All postdoctoral researchers at RCSI are eligible to serve as board members which ideally consists of 5-10 members. The Postdoc Society board members attend monthly Society meetings, participate in internal and external working groups, organize events, and maintain and update social media and communications with the Postdoc Society at large. Current postdoctoral representative will organise a new call for members of the board shall happen once a year in October or when a board member resigns from the society. Our current board members are:
- Dr. Hyab Mehari Abraha (Anatomy and Regenerative Medicine)
- Dr. Joice Cunningham (Department of Physiotherapy)
- Dr. Grace Hogan (Department of Anaesthesia & Critical Care)
- Dr. Navya Lakkappa (School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences)
- Dr. Roisin McAvera (Department of Pathology)
- Dr. Aisling Rehill (School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences)
- Dr. Subash Raj Susai (Department of Psychiatry)
- Dr. Cathy Richards (Department of Molecular Medicine)
In addition to workshops, trainings, and social events, we also have social clubs that meet on a regular basis. Feel free to contact postdocreps@rcsi.ie if you would like to set up a new social club, we would be delighted to help you advertising it to the wider postdoc community! Past clubs include: Book Club, Cultural Awareness Club (now headed by EDI), and Music Club.
Information for RCSI postdocs
The Researcher Handbook is essentially a “How to” guide which covers researcher queries relating to administrative issues such as the grant application process, research agreements, intellectual property, and also employment benefits. In addition there are pages dedicated to new and existing staff at the college.
An overview of the HR Strategy for Researchers (HRS4R) is available here.
Personal and professional development of postdoctoral researchers is a key objective at RCSI. Many courses/workshops are available for postdocs who are interested in improving their skills in students’ supervision, project management, leadership & teamwork, business, communication and career development. These courses are aimed to help researchers in building up expertise that will be useful in their future careers, which could be within academia, industry, commercialization of research, clinical research, science communication or others. Please see the full list of courses divided in different thematic categories here.