Academic Personnel Office

Fostering Academic Success

President’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program (PPFP) and UCR’s Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program (CPFP)

 

What Happens Once You Apply to the President’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program (PPFP) and How is the PPFP Related to UCR’s Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program (CPFP)?

The University of California President’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program was established in 1984 to encourage outstanding women and minority Ph.D. recipients to pursue academic careers at the University of California. The current program offers postdoctoral research fellowships, professional development, and faculty mentoring to outstanding scholars in all fields whose research, teaching, and service will contribute to diversity and equal opportunity at UC. The PPFP has a two-tiered review process, involving faculty from the campuses and members of the systemwide Advisory Committee. They examine the quality of the research proposed, the way in which the fellow will contribute to the mission of the program, and the letters of support attesting to the promise of the fellow and the project. Based on these rankings, the PPFP accepts the top few. The number varies but since 2018 the total number of applicants has increased consistently. Please read the President’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program Annual Report

Those ranked highly, but not chosen by the PPFP are then referred to the individual campuses housing a CPFP for consideration.

At UCR, a committee of 8 faculty members with broad experience, such as prior service on CAP, (4 covering CHASS, Business, GSOE, SPP and 4 covering BCOE, CNAS and SOM) is then used to rank the applications based on the quality of the application, the mentor-mentee-department match for the research proposed, and relevance to the mission of the UCR program. 

UCR faculty reviewers committee:

  • Boris Baer
  • Amalia Cabezas
  • Gabriela Canalizo
  • Margarita Curras-Collazo
  • Jodi Kim
  • Michelle Raheja
  • Leonora Saavedra
  • Setsu Shigematsu

Mentors for those applying through the PPFP to work at UCR are asked in their letters of support to comment on the departmental hiring plans and how the prospective fellow might fit into those plans https://academicpersonnel.ucr.edu/chancellors-postdoctoral-fellowship-program). The applicant’s potential for a tenure-track position at UCR is therefore a consideration.

The Vice Provost for Academic Personnel collates all rankings and comments and, based on these, first contacts department chairs to discuss their willingness/ability to provide space and administrative support and to ensure integration of the fellow into department life. Additional discussion of future hiring plans may also take place. Discussion of hiring plans does not constitute any commitment on the part of either the fellow or the department, it just ensures that some potential exists.

Once a departmental commitment is obtained, the fellow and mentor are notified by email and asked to comment on the fellow’s continued interest in, and eligibility for, the Program (e.g. will the PhD be obtained in time, has an alternate fellowship been accepted, has a faculty position been accepted). Once continued interest and eligibility have been affirmed, a formal letter of appointment is sent to the fellow along with forms required by the Graduate Division and the PPFP.

Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Fellows are subject to all UCR Program conditions of appointment described in the appointment letter, as well as all regulations and privileges of the President’s Postdoctoral Program https://ppfp.ucop.edu/info/how-to-apply/index.html.

President's Postdoctoral Fellowship Recipients

Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Recipients

Former President’s/Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Fellows on the faculty at UCR