UMass Chan Postdoc Association

The mission of the UMass Chan Postdoc Association is to provide a collaborative professional and social forum towards community building, networking opportunities, providing support and resources to postdocs. We aim to provide support towards developing and reaching career goals and organizing science outreach events. The UMass Chan Postdoc Association will advocate for all UMass Chan postdocs and promote engagement in all aspects of postdoctoral affairs. The UMass Chan Postdoc Association will be politically neutral and will actively pursue diversity inclusion and equal opportunity for all postdocs.

The UMass Chan Postdoc Association aims:

1. To foster an interconnected community by aiding social and professional interactions among postdoctoral scholars at UMass Chan.
2. To encourage productive dialogue among postdoctoral scholars and help build a network with current and former postdocs of UMass Chan.
3. To organize outreach events for postdocs of UMass Chan to engage with the public in scientific discussions, e.g. local school students.
4. To support international postdocs by providing a network to help with practicalities such as housing and provide an opportunity to make new friends and share a diversity of cultural backgrounds.
5. To collaborate with student groups and diversity interest groups to foster dialogue and interactions on campus between postdoctoral scholars and other groups at our university.
6. To provide a consolidated forum where postdoctoral scholars can share insights in a variety of issues, such as lab techniques and career development, using collective experience in faster resolving issues that may have been previously faced by peers. If possible, insight in these issues will be shared with the appropriate administrators and faculty of the school.

UMass Chan Postdoc Association Board 2025-26:

Co-Presidents: Chung-Fan (Joseph) Kuo & Peren Coskun
Vice-President (VP) of Finance: vacant
Vice-President (VP) of Communications: Brent Horowitz
Vice-President (VP) of Union Relations: Daniel Bollen
Outreach Committee Co-Chairs: Nicola Minchell, Ruchi Sharma & Aditya Patra
Social, Networking, and Well-Being Co-Chairs: Debora Pires-Ferreira, Chung-Fan (Joseph) Kuo & Aditya Patra
Governance Committee Co-Chairs: Brittany Rosener & Brent Horowitz
Postdoc Mentorship Program Co-Chairs: Lorena Ramalho & Ruchi Sharma
Social Media and Member Engagement Chair:  Debora Pires-Ferreira 
Academic and Professional Development Co-Chairs: Ximena Zottig, Andreas Herchenrother
Postdoc Representative on the Champion Advisory Committee of the Office of Well-Being: Ximena Zottig

Contact us: umpa@umassmed.edu