Postdoctoral Research

Postdoctoral researchers do what they do for any number of reasons. For some the ongoing learning and discovery is the main driver, they research because this gives them satisfaction; it is its own reward. For others the thoughts of helping people or changing the world are most compelling and these people work toward their idealistic and altruistic goals for the reward of scientific advancement.  For others still, it is the earning potential that excites. For the latter a postdoctoral research position within the commercial sector may be the most alluring type of research job, and there are some exciting stories coming out of the commercial post doctoral research sector.

The job of ‘Entrepreneurial Postdoctoral Fellow’ is a relatively new one in the worlds of research and enterprise. The position is designed to bridge the gap between lab research and commercial use. In this position a postdoctoral researcher is tasked with identifying research projects with commercial potential and seeing these through to fruition. Often the research undertaken is designed to show results or achieve goals that aren’t commercially related but when viewed differently have significant commercial potential.  As such, every postdoctoral researcher has the potential to successfully undertake the role assuming he or she is inclined and able to view research from a commercial angle.

In fact many entrepreneurial postdoctoral fellows do begin their careers working for corporations seeking innovation, sometimes they are the innovators as well as the person employed to fill the gap. Usually these researchers undertake their own lab research projects and then adapt them for commercial use. It’s exciting and lucrative work for those with the right qualifications and these will vary from enterprise to enterprise. It is likely though compelling graduate theses or dissertations will be a minimum for consideration.