Research | Office of Postdoctoral Affairs

The Office of Postdoctoral Affairs (OPA) was established at Boston Children's Hospital (BCH) during the 2000-2001 academic year, and is presently in its 20th year of operation.

The mission of the OPA is to enrich the BCH fellowship experience by providing training in scientific writing (grants and manuscripts) career development workshops, networking opportunities and monthly socials to provide a venue for interaction among research and clinical fellows across the hospital.

The OPA has assembled a curriculum that is designed to enrich the career development of fellows during their time at BCH, and prepare them for leadership positions in academia and industry, as well as other careers within the sciences.  All OPA programs are open to all clinical and research postdoctoral Fellows. Fellowship is often the component of academic training in which one is the most isolated, within a department, division, or even a laboratory. Therefore, one of the most important goals of our events, in addition to providing training in areas not normally covered by divisional and departmental programs, is to provide venues for interaction among fellows from all departments. Increased interaction among fellows across departments and divisions not only improves the training experience, but also gives each fellow a greater sense of belonging to the Boston Children's Hospital community. The OPA does not seek to replace the role of the division or department in establishing formal training programs for fellows.

The Office of Postdoctoral Affairs is always open to new suggestions that can improve fellows' adjustment and career development. Contact us at OPA@childrens.harvard.edu with any questions or for more information about our program.