Do you want to share your research? Do you want to connect with your peers? Do you want to win awesome prizes? If so, then save the date for UBC Postdoc Research Day!
When: December 14, 2023 (Thursday).
Where: Life Sciences Institute (2350 Health Sciences Mall), UBC Vancouver.
Who: All UBC postdocs.
More details coming soon!
Hey UBC Postdocs! 
Join us for Postdoc Research Day on Dec 6th, 2022!
Do you want to share your research? Do you want to connect with your peers? Are you excited to learn about successful interdisciplinary collaboration and implementing equity, diversity, and inclusion in your research? Do you want to win awesome prizes? If so, then submit an abstract and register for Postdoc Research Day!
When: December 6, 2022 (Tuesday); 9:00 am-6:00 pm; Evening Reception from 6:00-8:00 pm
Where: Life Sciences Institute (2350 Health Sciences Mall), UBC Vancouver
Who can attend: All UBC postdocs, graduate students, and RAs (Registration required)
Who can present: All UBC postdocs
Register here: https://ubc.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6m0SGIf0OBE333E
Submit an abstract (250 words max) using the link above.
Deadline for abstract submission: November 18, 2022, 11:59 pm PT
Our annual all-day Postdoc Research Day returns on December 6th, 2021!
Please find the full program here: RD2021 – Program Book
Join us for Postdoc Research Day, an all-day event featuring:
Registration has closed. Come back later for a link to the event recording!
More information below the flyer
The UBC Postdoctoral Association Research Day is back in person (and online) this year!
Featuring a full day of interdisciplinary talks, the annual Postdoc Research Day brings together postdoctoral researchers from across faculties and affiliated institutions at UBC Vancouver. This event will be held in parallel with the UBC Okanagan Postdoc Research Day with all recorded presentations available online afterwards. Full schedule to follow shortly.
When: December 6, 2021 (Monday) Research Day 9:15am-5:45pm; Evening Reception from 6pm onwards
Where: Life Sciences Institute (2350 Health Sciences Mall), UBC Vancouver campus, and on Zoom
Who can attend? (Registration for online attendance remains open until December 3rd. Unfortunately, in-person registration has closed)
Following the latest COVID-related safety guidelines*, in-person attendance is limited to UBC postdocs, research associates, and PhD students (limited spots) who will abide by these rules and to the latest occupancy limit. However, everyone is welcome to attend virtually! This full-day event will be broadcast online, and the recordings will be available for viewing later.
Why should you attend?
– Share your research with awards for the best presentations
– Connect with your postdoctoral peers over the free coffee, lunch, and light dinner
– Find new collaborators and learn about ongoing research at UBC
Want to present your research?
Our abstract deadline has passed.
Keynote Speaker
We are excited to introduce Dr. Steven Barnes as our Keynote Speaker!
Title and abstract:
An Incomplete Painting: Academia and Mental Wellness
The relationship between the academic environment and mental wellbeing is a popular topic of research—particularly in the context of undergraduate and professional programs. However, such increased awareness has yet to be adequately translated to significant action; this is especially true for the lives of graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, faculty, and staff. Having lived with a mental illness for the entirety of my academic career, I have witnessed both the progress and noticeable gaps. This talk will reflect on mental health and mental illness in academia, by interleaving relevant research with a retrospective of my visual art and personal experiences.
About Dr. Steven Barnes:
Steven J. Barnes (he/him/his, @sj_barnes) is a faculty member in the UBC Department of Psychology. He is well-regarded for his work related to student mental health and wellbeing, online learning technologies, and bipolar disorder (BD). Steven is one of the founding members of Kaleidoscope, a mental health peer support group at UBC’s Vancouver Campus. In addition, he is the recipient of multiple institutional awards for his teaching, including the Killam Teaching Prize. He is also the recipient of the 3M National Teaching Fellowship, the top national award given for teaching in any discipline in any postsecondary institution in Canada. Steven is an accomplished author, having published in the fields of epileptology, neurophysiology, student mental health, digital mental health, bipolar disorder, and behavioural neuroscience. Beyond being a prominent educator, researcher, and author, Steven is also an accomplished artist.
Postdoc Town Hall
The UBC PDA wants to hear from you! As the independent organization working to represent all UBC postdoctoral fellows and advocate on their behalf, the PDA would love to hear about your experience as a postdoc. For example, how are you liking our socials? Are you satisfied with your professional development opportunities? How about that extended benefits package? Come chat with the PDA exec team and help us prepare an advocacy agenda that represents you!
Registration has closed. Come back later for a link to the event recording!
Email us if you have any questions.
We are extremely grateful to our partners and sponsors who made this event possible:
adMare Bioinnovations
BC Research
New England BioLabs
STEMCELL Technologies
Variational AI
UBC Vancouver Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies
UBC Okanagan Postdoctoral Association
*COVID-related safety guidelines will be dependent on the latest provincial public health orders. These will include a requirement for proof of vaccination, a legal occupancy limit, physical distancing when possible, and indoor mask-wearing.
Useful resources:
Event Safety Plan
Code of Conduct
RD2021 – Program Schedule
RD2021 – Program Book
Virtual Postdoc Research Day on Monday, January 18th, 2021
We are excited to announce that our biggest event of the year is coming up! Please join us for Postdoc Research Day, an all-day event featuring:
When: Monday, January 18th, 2021 at 9:30am – 6:00pm
Where: online via Zoom (those that register will receive the Zoom meeting link and information prior to the event)
This is a free event! Register Here!
Research Talks
Everyone is welcome! Join us for an exciting interdisciplinary event hearing about the amazing work by postdocs across the UBC Vancouver and Okanagan campuses.
Registration is necessary to attend and present. Click here to register!
Keynote Lecture
We are excited to introduce Dr. Connie and Allen Eaves as our Keynote Speakers. They will be sharing their career paths and experiences in academia and industry, respectively.
Connie Eaves
Dr. Connie Eaves, PhD FRS(C) Corresp FRS(Edinburgh), is a Professor of Medical Genetics at UBC and Distinguished Scientist at the BC Cancer Research Institute. Her research over several decades, with more than 500 published papers, has advanced our understanding of stem cell biology and cancer development in blood and mammary cells, with important implications for improving cancer treatment. She has received numerous national and international awards and honours, not only for her scientific contributions but also for her role as a national leader, dedicated mentor and valued collaborator in the pursuit of new understanding of cell regulation that will stand the test of time and enable the more effective diagnosis and management of human disease.
Allen Eaves
Dr. Allen Eaves, OBC MD PhD FRCPC, was the founding Director of the Terry Fox Laboratory and Head of Clinical Hematology at UBC. Professor Emeritus of Hematology since 2006, he has devoted himself to building STEMCELL Technologies Inc, which he founded in 1993 to provide standardized reagents for stem cell, regenerative medicine and cancer research. Always profitable, and with 97% of its sales outside of Canada, STEMCELL is Canada’s largest biotech company with ~1500 employees and a global network of sales offices and distribution centres. Dr. Eaves is passionate about creating rewarding employment for those who love science.
Career Panels
This year, we will have two concurrent career panels. One will be focused on the academic job search while the other panel will be centered on non-academic careers. Come with any questions you have and hear from several panelists in these fields as they discuss their experience transitioning from a Postdoc, the application process, and more!
Academic Panel:
Non-Academic Panel:
Brief Message from Dr. Gail C. Murphy and Dr. Peter Simpson
Don’t miss Dr. Gail Murphy, Vice-President Research & Innovation, and Dr. Peter Simpson, Dean of the College of Graduate Studies (Okanagan) as they join us during Research Day to share a brief statement about the UBC postdoc community.
Postdoc Town Hall
The UBC PDA wants to hear from you! As the independent organization working to represent all UBC postdoctoral fellows and advocate on their behalf, the PDA would love to hear about your experience as a postdoc. We especially would like to hear about how the pandemic has affected you. We will be sharing the results of our COVID-19 Research Curtailment Survey that was launched this summer and the ways we are working to address the concerns you voiced in that survey. We would also love to hear about other experiences you have as a postdoc: How are you liking our virtual or physically-distanced socials? Are you satisfied with your professional development opportunities? How about that extended benefits package? Come chat with the PDA exec team and help us prepare an advocacy agenda that represents you!
A Note on the Virtual Format
Each year, the Postdoc Research Day is not only a professional development opportunity, it is also a great venue for networking, meeting and socializing with other postdocs. While it will be virtual this year, we are still striving to provide an enriching and comfortable environment for postdocs to make connections. We will be having virtual “coffee breaks” and an online social hour after the event.
We look forward to joining you at this year’s Postdoc Research Day!
Postdoc Research Day is coming up on December 2nd. This link will direct you to the abstract book:
For the event schedule (quick to download), please check the following link:
Postdoc Research Day on Monday, December 2nd
sponsored by STEMCELL Technologies
Our biggest event of the year is coming up! Postdoc Research Day is a full day of interdisciplinary talks by postdocs at UBC in a fantastic venue at a large capacity.
Everyone is welcome to attend, but only UBC affiliated postdocs can present.
Abstract submission has closed now, but we are still accepting registrations until Nov 30 at noon!
Find the abstract book here: https://bit.ly/35JGb6e
Where? Pharmaceutical Sciences Building, UBC Campus
When? Monday, December 2nd
Research Day: 9 am – 5.30 pm
Evening reception from 5:30 pm onwards (networking + dinner)
This year’s speaker line-up is showcasing the diversity of research by postdocs at UBC!
08:30 – 09:00 Registration (Atrium)
09:00-09:15 Welcome & Introduction, Dr. Daniel Anstett, President UBC PDA (Lecture Theatre)
09:15 – 10:30 Research Session 1 (Lecture Theatre)
Full talks:
09:15-09:30 Dr. Victoria Hemming, Forestry
Who to trust? How to derive improved quantitative judgements from experts for models and decisions
09:30-09:45 Dr. Rohan Abraham, BC Cancer Research Centre
Machine Learning CADx process for classification of sub-cm Lung nodules in the PanCan study
09:45-10:00 Dr. Jesse Chao, Cell & Physiological Sciences
A premalignant cell-based model for functionalization and classification of PTEN variants
Lightning Talks:
10:00-10:05 Dr. Marita Rodriguez, Engineering
3D Bioprinted human cardiac tissues for toxicity screening applications
10:05-10:10 Dr. Doris Chow, Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences
Eyes as a window to global motion perception: A validation of an oculomotor tracking task to assess motion sensitivity in depth
10:10-10:15 Dr. Angelica Araujo de Melo Maia, Education
What does it take to be (come) an inclusive teacher?
10:15-10:20 Dr. Kiran Pawar, Department of Medicine, ICORD
Non-invasive chronic spinal stimulation as multi-session therapy to improve cardiovascular function after spinal cord injury
10:20-10:25 Dr. Dustin Heeney, Food Science
The green wave of medicine: Exploring the anti-inflammatory potential of Canadian hemp to treat irritable bowel disease
10:30-11:00 Coffee Break (Atrium)
11:00-12:15 Research Session 2 (Lecture Theatre)
Full talks:
11:00-11:15 Dr. Antonin Machac, Biodiversity
Diversity dynamics across scales
11:15-11:30 Dr. Omid Haji-Ghassemi, Biochemistry
Modification of heart channel proteins via stress signalling
11:30-11:45 Dr. Peifan Wu, Vancouver School of Economics
Firm demographics and the Great Recession
Lightning talks:
11:45-11:50 Dr. Chelsea Little, Zoology
Animals link ecosystems through resource movement
11:50-11:55 Dr. Christina Gray, Architecture
Architectural clients in the era of consumer empowerment
11:55-12:00 Dr. Sarah Grasedieck, Michael Smith Laboratories
Vitamin C-induced epigenomic remodelling as a preventive therapy for leukemic transformation
12:00-12:05 Dr. Lisanne de Vries, Wood Science
Plants are alternative for fossil fuels
12:05-12:10 Dr. Jon Breen, Occupational Science & Therapy
Measuring workplace attitude towards disabled employees
12:15-13:30 Lunch (Atrium)
12:45-13:30 Townhall (Lecture Theatre)
13:30-14:15 Research Session 3 (Lecture Theatre)
13:30-13:45 Dr. Elvin Ong, Public policy & Global affairs
Is it worth it? Building opposition alliances in electoral autocracies
13:45-14:00 Dr. Rohan Khadilkar, Cell & Physiological Sciences
Stem cell-niche interactions regulate signalling micro environment and innate immune response in Drosophila
14:00-14:15 Dr. Emanuel Serban, Engineering
New solar power conservation architecture for renewable energy systems
14:15-14:30 Short break
14:30-15:30 Keynote Lecture by Dr. Josef Penninger, From haploid stem cells to blood vessel engineering (Lecture Theatre)
15:30-16:00 Coffee Break (Atrium)
16:00-17:15 Postdoc Careers Panel Discussion (Lecture Theatre)
17:15-17:30 Prizes & Wrap-up (Lecture Theatre), Dr. Daniel Anstett, President UBC PDA
17:30 onwards Evening Reception Drinks & light supper
In addition to the interdisciplinary talks by postdocs, there will be a keynote lecture by Dr. Josef Penninger about his research “From Haploid stem cells to blood vessel engineering” and about experience in academia and industry and his path to becoming the director of the Life Sciences Institute at UBC.
Josef Martin Penninger, born in Gurten, Austria, is an Austrian geneticist and the Canada 150 Research Chair in Functional Genetics. Dr. Penninger is currently the Director of the Life Sciences Institute (LSI) at the University of British Columbia. He studied medicine at the University of Innsbruck in Austria. From 1990 to 1994 he worked as post-doctoral fellow at the Ontario Cancer Institute, thereafter until 2002 at the Department of Immunology and Medical Biophysics at the University of Toronto. As Principal Investigator of Amgen, his independent lab contributed to the development of the antibody Denosumab for bone loss and also found the first connection for RANKL to mammary gland development in pregnancy and breast cancer. In 2002, he moved to Vienna, Austria to start and develop the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, which is now the largest and most successful institute of the Academy based on high impact publications and the number of European Research Council grants received.
Dr. Penninger envisions to recreate this environment at the LSI to nurture and train the best and brightest young minds of UBC scholars. His major accomplishments include pioneering insights into the molecular basis of osteoporosis, breast cancer and metastasis, and he has published extensively in several multidisciplinary scientific journals, with over 60 publications in Cell, Nature, and Science. He has received numerous awards including the Wittgenstein Prize of the Austrian Federal Government. the Descartes Prize for Research, the Ernst Jung Prize for Medical Excellence, the Innovator Award of the US Department of Defense, and most recently the Austrian Cross of Honor for Science and Art First Class.
During lunch, we will hold our first ever Postdoc Townhall Meeting
The UBC PDA wants to hear from you! As the independent organization working to represent all UBC postdoctoral fellows and advocate on their behalf, the PDA would love to hear about your life postdoc-ing! Should we have more coffee parties or pub crawls? Are you satisfied with your professional development opportunities? How about that extended benefits package? Come chat with the PDA exec team and help us prepare an advocacy agenda that represents you!
An industry focused career panel in the afternoon will feature representatives from local companies that are employing PhDs (to be announced). This year’s line-up for the career panel includes:
Dr. Theresa Grieco, STEMCELL technologies
Dr. Ellen Schelew, Lumerical Inc.
Dr. Conny Lin, College of Pharmacists BC
Dr. Friderike Moon, Science World
Dr. Stefanie Vogt, AbCellera
Dr. Sherry Wang, Genome Sciences Centre
We are looking forward to seeing you at Postdoc Research Day 2019!
Registration: https://bit.ly/2MXleOJ
Thank you everyone, who partook in Postdoc Research Day 2018!
It was a big success this year – 125 people attended the meeting, of which 68 joined the networking reception!
There were so many interesting talks and posters, which sparked many questions from the audience and interesting discussions. Also, the keynote lecture by Dr. Matthew Dahabieh, and career panel discussions were well attended, and again, met enthusiastic questions and discussions from the floor.
Here is a list of the winners of the oral and poster presentation competition.
Oral Presentations
Poster Presentations
1st place ($75): Dr. Ivan Klyuzhin (Neurology, Medicine)
2nd place ($50): Dr. Tom Nightingale (ICORD, Medicine)
3rd place ($25): Dr. Jessalyn Alvina (Computer Science)
Last but not least, we are grateful for Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, Vice President Academic, Life Sciences Institute for sponsoring Postdoc Associaion and our events, as well as Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences for hosting our event in their beautiful venue.
It’s less than a week till this year’s Postdoc Research Day!
Thank you very much for those who submitted the abstracts. As usual, it was a tough choice for us to select the final competitors from so many excellent submissions across UBC. Here is the abstract book this year, which includes all the participating abstracts (both oral and poster presentations) as well as in-depth details for Keynote Lecture and Career Panel Discussion.
In order to minimize our carbon footprint, we do not have a physical abstract book. So please feel free to download the Abstract book linked above on your device for quick reference.
In case you have not signed up for our event yet, please go ahead and register here.
Hope to see you on December 3rd!
The UBC PDA is excited to share some additional details about our keynote speaker at Postdoc Research Day 2018 by Dr. Matthew Dahabieh!
Dr. Matthew S Dahabieh is the Chief Science Officer (CSO) of Renaissance BioScience Corp., a leading yeast innovation and biotechnology company founded in 2013. After joining Renaissance in 2014 as the Head of Research and VP Business Development, Matthew was appointed CSO in January 2017. As CSO, Dr. Dahabieh is responsible for leading the company’s R&D efforts, including identifying novel technology development opportunities, driving intellectual property and patent strategy, building collaborative research and strategic partnership networks, and accessing non-dilutive research funding.
Prior to joining Renaissance BioScience, Dr. Dahabieh completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship at The J. David Gladstone Institute in San Francisco, CA. Dr. Dahabieh holds a Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology as well as a Master’s degree in Genetics—focusing on applied yeast metabolic engineering and fermentation—both from the University of British Columbia. Dr. Dahabieh is also a graduate of the Invention to Innovation entrepreneurship certificate program at the Beedie School of Business at Simon Fraser University.
Dr. Dahabieh is the author of 11 peer-reviewed publications and two patents and has secured nearly $3M in research grant funding throughout his career.
His talk will be titled “The Scientific Method of the Scientist-Entrepreneur“. Below is a brief summary of what he will cover:
With job availability and security for PhD graduates more uncertain than ever, it is critical that today’s young scientists learn how to identify, cultivate, and ultimately capitalize on career opportunities available to them. Entrepreneurial thinking is a key part of this skill set and can be applied to any PhD career path whether it be academia, policy, industry, or, indeed, founding a new venture. As the Chief Science Officer of a biotechnology startup (Renaissance BioScience), Dr. Matthew Dahabieh will discuss his path to becoming a Scientist-Entrepreneur, what really constitutes scientific entrepreneurship, and how entrepreneurial thinking cultivates career opportunities.
Postdoc Research Day is an annual event for UBC postdocs to share their research across campus, organised by the UBC PDA. This year’s event will be held on Monday, December 3rd – find out about our careers panel here, and register here. Consider submitting an abstract to present your work – oral presentation abstracts are due 14 November, and poster abstracts due 23 November.
Postdoc Research Day 2018 is coming up on Monday, 3 December.
We will be concluding the day’s formal events with a Panel Discussion on Postdoc Careers. We have invited 5 panelists who have all successfully transitioned from being postdocs into a diverse array of careers.
The discussion will be a chance for you to hear about how they made this transition, how their postdoc experience has influenced their subsequent jobs, and tips for postdocs planning careers going forward.
Our five panelists will be:
Dr. Andrew Hegle, Director of Regulatory Affairs and Quality Assurance at Cannevert Therapeutics, and Adjunct Professor in Pharmacology at UBC.
Andrew received his doctorate in molecular biology at the University of Michigan and came to Vancouver as a UBC postdoc in 2007. There, he became closely involved with the postdoc community, and organized the efforts to formalize the UBC Postdoctoral Association, expand benefits, and establish the Postdoctoral Fellows Office in 2010. A champion of alternative careers for PhDs, after leaving academia he worked briefly in the biotech industry and as an independent consultant before returning to UBC in 2015 as a cofounder of Cannevert Therapeutics, a startup drug research and analytical services company. Andrew is currently the Director of Regulatory Affairs and Quality Assurance for Cannevert and holds an adjunct faculty position in the UBC Department of Pharmacology.
Dr. Moslem Noori, Researcher at 1QBit.
Moslem Noori received his B.Sc. degrees in electrical engineering in 2005 and applied mathematics in 2006 from the Amirkabir University of Technology in Iran and M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from the University of Alberta in 2008 and 2012, respectively. Moslem then held a postdoctoral position at The University of British Columbia from 2013 to 2014. He returned to the University of Alberta as an Alberta Innovates Technology Futures (AITF) postdoctoral fellow from 2014 to 2016 and also spend time as a visiting scholar at Bell Labs. Moslem is currently a researcher at 1QB Information Technologies (1QBit) working toward developing practical applications for quantum computing. His previous industrial work experiences were at CleanKeys Inc and Baragheh Telecommunications Co. Moslem was a recipient of several awards and scholarships including the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship, the NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowship, and the AITF Postdoctoral Fellowship.
Dr. Aria Hahn, Co-founder and lead research analyst of Koonkie Cloud Services.
Aria Hahn holds a masters degree in soil science from the University of Alberta and a PhD in metagenomics from the University of British Columbia. Aria’s research interest and commercial interests include multi-omics methods and the design of high performance software and analytical solutions for processing Big genomic Data. In 2016 she co-founded Koonkie, a bioinformatics company that provides bespoke services to clients across industries. Koonkie is determined to shorten the time to discovery in a simple, fast and user-friendly way. Koonkie is now launching a software platform, called Phandi which combines scientific research and data management tools into a single user interface, and delivers results ready to publish and commercialize. As a co-founder and CEO of Koonkie Cloud Services, Aria strives to simplify the path to understanding complex DNA data, so users can focus on discovery.
Dr. Noushin Nabavi, Data Scientist for the BC Provincial government.
Noushin Nabavi earned a B.Sc. in Cell and Molecular Biology and a PhD in Cell and Systems Biology from the University of Toronto where she worked on mesenchymal stem cell differentiation to bone. She then obtained a Siebel stem cell fellowship in 2012 from the University of California at Berkeley to work on the role of Sirtuins in aging and disease. In Silicon Valley, she co-founded a stem-cell company for Huntington disease and was involved in the strategic development and management of the company along with three other postdoctoral fellows. She then came back to Canada as a senior postdoctoral scientist at the Vancouver Prostate Centre and BC Cancer Agency, where she led a three year genomics project on a rare cancer called malignant peritoneal mesothelioma with funding secured from BC Cancer Foundation. She has recently joined the Integrated Data Division at the Ministry of Citizen’s Services in Victoria as a data scientist working on complex datasets to enable the development of evidence-based decision making.
Dr. Robert Judson, Senior Scientist at STEMCELL Technologies.
Dr. Robert Judson is a senior scientist at STEMCELL Technologies. In his role, Robert oversees a research team to develop, commercialize and market innovative products for the life sciences industry. As a R&D scientist, Robert is required to wear many hats and day-to-day tasks can include reviewing new licenseable technologies, assessing IP landscapes, patent writing, grant writing, developing marketing strategies, managing external collaborations, attending conferences and of course, lab work. Robert is a relative newbie to the biotech world, but over the last few years has gained a nice perspective of transitioning from an academic track to the ‘dark side’. Having being recruited out of his postdoc, he was previously training in the lab of Dr. Fabio Rossi (UBC) and received his PhD in molecular biology in the U.K under a Nuffield Foundation fellowship. Robert has, and continues to published papers on a variety of topics in stem cell biology and regenerative medicine and enjoys teaching on a number of graduate programs on a voluntary basis. Robert is passionate about Canadian innovation and technology and is an advocate of synergy between government, academia and the tech-industry to tackle modern-day health care problems.
We look forward to seeing you at Postdoc Research Day to join in the discussion and see the research presentations from postdocs across UBC! Check out the web page for all the details and online registration.