Postdoctoral appointments can have different functions and meanings, depending on the field and whether the postdoc is a man or a woman. This papers summarizes the findings from the Ph.D.s—Ten Years Later survey for biochemists and mathematicians.
Nerad, M. & Cerny, J. (1999). Postdoctoral Patterns, Career Advancement, and Problems, Science, Vol. 285, pp. 1533-1535
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Interview data are presented shedding light on additional factors and concerns of woment graduate students that are related to lower participation in graduate studies and higher attrition.
Nerad, M. (1992). Paper presented at the conference, Science and Engineering Programs: On Target for Women? sponsored by the National Academy of Sciences/National Research Council/Office of Scientific and Engineering Personnel, March. See also Science and Engineering Programs: On Target for Women? Marsha Lakes Matyas and Linda Skidmore Dix, eds. Washington D.C.: National Acacdemy Press (1992), 75-80
This study investigated gender differences experienced by doctoral students at a major research university during 1987-88. Clear differences emerged between how men and women assessed distribution of department resources and relationships with faculty, with women’s assessments being significantly more negative. Hierarchical regression analysis showed a relationship between positive departmental culture and time-to-degree for women and men in some fields.
Nerad, M. (1991). Assessing Doctoral Student Experience: Gender and Departmental Culture, Paper presented at the 31st Annual Conference of the Association for Institutional Research, San Francisco, May 26-29.
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While mentoring is recognized as highly beneficial, the traditional model of faculty mentoring carries high risks of failure and is not always feasible. Network mentoring and peer mentoring are promising alternatives.
Nerad, M. (1990) A Second Look at Mentoring Graduate Students: Some Provocative Thoughts. Presented at the University of California System-wide Graduate Division Conference, Monterey, CA, November 13.
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