Policies

Boston University is committed to providing a supportive and productive training environment for our community of postdoctoral scholars. The following policies provide guidance and consistency across colleges, schools, centers, and institutes.

• Postdoctoral Scholars Policy
• Minimum Salary
• Term Limits
• Non-Employee Postdoc Policies

Postdoctoral Scholars Policy

The Postdoctoral Scholars Policy defines the postdoctoral scholar role and guides the appointment process, creating consistency across BU’s campuses.

Minimum Salary

The Vice President and Associate Provost for Research communicates the salary minimum for postdoctoral scholars to units sponsoring postdoctoral scholarship. Salary minimums past and current are summarized in the table below:

The most recent memo can be found here.

Term Limits

Effective July 1, 2016, postdoctoral scholar appointments at Boston University cannot exceed beyond five years without prior approval from the Vice President and Associate Provost for Research. This term limit does not apply to postdoctoral service completed at external institutions. Departments, Schools/Colleges, and Research Centers/Institutes should transition postdoctoral scholars that have reached their five year term limit to the appropriate research staff or faculty appointment commensurate with their qualifications and experience within one month following their five year service date. All current postdoctoral scholars exceeding five years of postdoctoral service must be transitioned into new appointments by December 1, 2016.

Policies for Non-Employee Postdocs

Health insurance and subsidized transportation passes are now available to non-employee postdocs at BU. The Non-Employee Benefits page provides information about deadlines, tax implications, and the process to enroll.