Postdocs in U.S. Research Universities, 1987-2008: Professionalization and Contingency in Academic Research

• In Event: Top Down or Bottom Up? Building Human Capacity in Higher Education

Abstract

The number of postdoctoral researchers (postdocs) employed at US research universities had grown dramatically since the 1980s. In fact, postdocs are among the fastest growing group of academic workers in American higher education. Yet little research has examined this growth. This paper tests two models of the postdoc - a professional training model and a contingent labor model. Results from fixed effects panel regression show elements of both models as predictors of postdoc growth, although institutional control is a key determinant.

Authors

• Brendan Cantwell, Michigan State University

• Barrett Taylor, University of Georgia