During Your First Month at UCSF
Upon Arrival
- International postdocs: Review the arrival instructions on the website of the International Students and Scholars Office (ISSO).
- Plan your commute. Visit the UCSF Campus Life Services website for information about public and shared transportation, parking, campus shuttles, biking, maps, and more.
First Week
- Get a UCSF ID card.
- Make plans to attend an HR Postdoc Benefits Overview.
- Attend the HR onboarding session.
- Enroll in the Postdoctoral Scholar Benefits Plan, which includes health insurance. You must do this within your 31-day eligibility period! Your PI is required to cover the majority of the cost of your benefits; you pay just a small percentage of the health insurance premium. Read more about your pay and benefits.
Meet with your faculty mentor to begin developing your postdoctoral research and training plan.
- Review the following tips on how to get the most from your mentor.
♦ Understand your mentor's expectations and your own responsibilities
♦ Find out how your PI will measure your success and set some short-and long-term goals
♦ Discuss how you and your mentor will communicate, including preferences, patterns, frequency
♦ Ask questions about the lab group and department
♦ Start thinking about your Individual Development Plan
- Meet with your lab manager or administrator for practical tips, like ordering supplies.
- You have a UCSF email address, and as a postdoc you've been added to the postdoc listserv, through which you will receive a lot of information that will be helpful or even necessary to you during your time at UCSF.
- Familiarize yourself with best practices in case of an earthquake or other emergency.
- Sign up for UCSF’s WarnMe alert system.
Weeks 2 – 4
- Read the onboarding follow-up email and follow any instructions contained in it.
- International postdocs, obtain a Social Security number.
Make sure you understand your tax situation.
- If you haven't already done it, be sure to enroll in the Postdoctoral Scholar Benefits Plan.
- Start working on your IDP (Individual Development Plan) and review it with your PI.
- On the 8th of each month, a Postdoc Entrance Survey will be sent to all those hired the previous month. Each postdoc will receive a personalized link to complete the survey, which asks some career-related questions that will help the Office for Postdoctoral Scholars develop appropriate workshops. Please complete the short survey, which takes about five minutes.
- Familiarize yourself with the bargaining agreement, sometimes called "union contract," between UC postdocs and the union representing them.
- Okay, you've been through a lot of changes in the last month. How are you feeling? Throughout your postdoc, don't forget to pay attention to your physical and emotional health too!