Blog Post | January 2024
UTHealth Houston President’s Excellence in Postdoctoral Research Award
The 2023 President’s Excellence in Postdoctoral Research Symposium recognized Sarah Surrain, PhD, for her award-winning submission and presentation. This annual event, hosted by the Postdoctoral Association, provides an opportunity for current postdoctoral research fellows to hone their skills before a panel of faculty judges.
The event’s competitive application process required the submission of numerous documents detailing the postdoc’s research. A panel of five faculty members from varying departments carefully reviewed and scored each item:
- Signed letter of nomination from faculty mentor summarizing the postdoc’s work and qualifications (25%)
- Current curriculum vitae and additional relevant accomplishments (25%)
- Scientific and lay abstracts written by the nominee (50%):
- Scientific abstract of conducted research, including an introduction, methods, results, and discussion
- Lay summary of the research program, its scientific or scholarly significance, and its relationship to career goals
Five finalists were selected and invited to provide a ten-minute presentation at the annual symposium, followed by a five-minute period of questions and answers. Each finalist was ranked using a matrix designed for the oral presentation competition. Upon receiving the highest score, the UTHealth Houston President’s Excellence in Postdoctoral Research Award first-place honor was awarded to Dr. Surrain, along with a $3,000 cash prize.
“I am honored to provide my full support and recommendation for Sarah Surrain for UTHealth President’s Postdoctoral Excellence in Research Award. We see her passion for helping improve the health outcomes of children, and beyond that, we see her promise of becoming a lead researcher in education.”
– Tricia Zucker, PhD, Co-Director of CLI
