The secret of the J. David Gladstone Institutes' success — the San Francisco institute rated No.1 in our 2008 survey, No. 2 in 2007, and No. 1 in 2006 — is an attentive postdoctoral advisor, says Matt Hirschey, a postdoc at the Gladstone Institute of Virology and Immunology. "This was the only place I came across that sort of position," says Hirschey of postdoc advisor John LeViathan.
Aside from the postdoc services, Hirschey says he came to Gladstone for the opportunity to work with a high caliber of scientists across the three Gladstone Institutes. Gladstone recently recruited a leader in stem cell research, Shinya Yamanaka, himself a former Gladstone postdoc. "Being around good scientists really elevates your game," says Hirschey. He gets a double dose of expert guidance by working with his mentor as well as another investigator at the Institute for Cardiovascular Disease who...
Postdocs aren't simply molded by their environment at Gladstone. They also help shape it. "We've been consistent in getting feedback from postdocs," says LeViathan. After postdocs told LeViathan they wanted more career advice and mentoring, Gladstone launched a postdoc alumni website in 2007, which gives outgoing postdocs inside contacts within industry and academia. In addition, four times per year, investigators are trained to become better mentors. Childcare is also a hot topic, and Gladstone is establishing a childcare subsidy plan for postdocs and researchers.
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