September 2026
Dear Colleagues,
Since 2009, the National Postdoctoral Association (NPA) has sponsored National Postdoc Appreciation Week (NPAW) to acknowledge the contributions, impact, and value of postdocs in research, education, innovation, mentoring, and society. NPAW also brings attention to the career-development, professional, and community needs of postdoctoral scholars and encourages institutions to strengthen postdoctoral training and opportunities.
This year, we celebrate the 17th annual NPAW from September 21–25, 2026, under the national theme “Celebrating 150 Years of the U.S. Postdoc Position.”
As this important week approaches, the University of Pittsburgh Postdoctoral Association (UPPDA) would like to highlight the importance of recognizing and celebrating the postdoctoral community across Pitt. Postdocs are often the driving force behind groundbreaking discoveries, innovative projects, grant productivity, publications, teaching, mentoring, and the day-to-day success of research programs. Their contributions are essential to the University’s academic and research mission.
This year, UPPDA is especially excited to include the first-ever Pitt–CMU postdoctoral collaboration as part of our NPAW programming. We hope this collaboration will help postdocs create networks beyond their own labs, departments, schools, and even institutions. NPAW is not only a week of appreciation; it is also an opportunity to build friendships, exchange ideas, experience Pittsburgh’s diverse academic and cultural community, and create meaningful connections that may grow into future collaborations.
We encourage every department, school, and unit to embrace this opportunity to honor postdocs during NPAW. This can be done through events, workshops, coffee or snack breaks, acknowledgments of postdoctoral achievements, or simply by expressing gratitude for the work postdocs do every day. Even small gestures of appreciation can have a meaningful impact on postdoc morale, visibility, belonging, and retention.
We also encourage postdocs to actively participate in NPAW events, take photos, share experiences, enjoy the culture, food, and community vibe of Pittsburgh, and connect with fellow postdocs from different countries, disciplines, and backgrounds. Pitt has a wonderfully diverse international postdoc community, and NPAW gives us a chance to celebrate that diversity while building a stronger and more connected postdoc network.
For details about NPAW events, upcoming UPPDA activities, and ways to stay involved, please visit our website: https://www.uppda.pitt.edu/
We also kindly encourage all Pitt postdocs to register their Pitt email ID with UPPDA through our website so they can receive timely updates about events, opportunities, advocacy initiatives, networking programs, and postdoc community announcements.
Thank you for your dedication to supporting and honoring postdocs. We hope you will encourage your postdocs to attend UPPDA’s NPAW events and help make this year’s celebration meaningful, visible, and memorable.
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any ideas, suggestions, or questions regarding NPAW or postdoctoral training and support more broadly.
Warm regards,
University of Pittsburgh Postdoctoral Association Executive Board 2026–2027
Monojit “Mono” Bhattacharjee, PhD, President
Sagar Dhoble, PhD, Vice President
Divya Mishra, PhD, Advocacy Chair
Siddhi Jain, PhD, Career Development Chair
Ipsita Dey, PhD, Communications Chair
Han Zou, MD, PhD, International Chair
Marie-Charlotte Allichon, PhD, Networking Chair