On May 14th, UC-Davis held their first-ever Postdoctoral Research Symposium, which was organized by fellow postdoc Dr. Kaisa Kajala as a part of her “Professors for the Future” fellowship. My abstract for the symposium was selected among those submitted to be an oral presentation rather than a poster, which not only meant that I would gain more experience giving talks to a broad scientific audience, but it meant that I would be competing for a $500 Best Talk Award!

A photo of me presenting at the symposium. Photo by Lilia Kurmanaeva.

The one-day symposium was full of fascinating presentations across many disciplines, and I felt for the first time since arriving at UC-Davis in the fall of 2013 that I was part of a greater community of postdocs here in Davis. Postdocs can often end up isolated, but this event was a great success in bringing together a large number of us to present our research, network, and socialize. Kaisa and the rest of her organizing committee did a wonderful job putting together a full day of both through-provoking presentations and relaxing time to socialize over food and drinks.

Best Talk winners, joined by organizer Kaisa Kajala (left). Photo by Lilia Kurmanaeva.

At the end of the day, there was an awards reception with hors d’oeuvres and beer, sponsored by Lagunitas Brewing Company. During the reception, it was announced that I was the winner of the Best Talk in my session! I am thrilled to have been chosen among such great presenters. I hope that another postdoc takes the reigns next year to organize the “Second Annual” Postdoctoral Research Symposium so it becomes an yearly tradition.

It’s somewhat unfortunate that there’s a typo in the certificate, but oh well, I’ll take it!