The training and skill sets necessary to fill these jobs are becoming more complex. Postdoc research positions are stretching beyond five years, sometimes to seven and 10 years. One reason is that "the turnover from the top is not as frequent as [from] the bottom [creating an advancement bottleneck], and that applies to basic sciences, not to clinical or preventive sciences, where there is still a shortage," says Kimes.
Matthew Ames Postdoc training is also lengthening due to the multidisciplinary nature of research. For example, in the recent past there have been shortages of molecular and genetic epidemiologists, says Matthew Ames, director of research for the Mayo Foundation, Rochester, Minn., and also director of the developmental therapeutics program at the Mayo Cancer Center. "We needed people with the skills of a molecular geneticist who could develop methodologies to screen [for genetic defects], and also the skills of an epidemiologist who ...
