University welcomes future research leaders
2018 Sydney Postdoctoral Fellows (from left) Dr Hamid Arandiyan, Dr Brigitte Sommer, Dr Stefan Oehlers, Dr Jonathan Danon, Dr Rachael Dodd, Dr Zac Chatterton, with 2017 Fellow Dr Mohammad Ali Moni (centre, seated), who started in December.
The University of Sydney Postdoctoral Fellowships provide outstanding young academics with the opportunity to conduct innovative work at one of our 10 multidisciplinary initiatives that focus on some of the greatest challenges of our time, as well as our leading faculties and schools.
Fellows receive a significant research establishment allowance and a full salary for up to three years. They will also become lifetime members of the Sydney Society of Fellows, a first-of-its-kind in Australia, which epitomises our commitment to ground-breaking research and scholarship.
Projects in this year's cohort include developing better treatments for PTSD, conducting the first comprehensive gender assessment of the ‘Khmer Rouge Tribunal’ and studying zebrafish to understand tuberculosis and discover new drugs to treat infection.
Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Duncan Ivison welcomed the fellows, adding that they would enhance the research strengths and culture of the University and contribute to the University’s thriving intellectual life.
“We’re thrilled to welcome this new cohort of fellows. We introduced this scheme almost two decades ago, and it has gone from strength-to-strength, supporting the best young postdoctoral fellows from around the world to progress their career and become leaders in their fields.”
The Sydney Postdoctoral Fellowships are one of several funding schemes aimed at supporting our up-and-coming research stars. Others include the SOAR Fellowships and the Robinson Fellowships, which are both aimed at supporting current early and mid-career Sydney academics, fast-tracking their careers and scaling their impact.
It’s all part of the University’s 2016–20 Strategic Plan initiatives to boost research excellence and invest in supporting our staff to achieve their potential.
“We have committed to tripling our investment in research – from installing world-class infrastructure to developing new funding, mentoring and training programs that support researchers at every stage of their careers,” Professor Ivison said.
2018 University of Sydney Postdoctoral Fellows
Dr Rachael Dodd will work with the Sydney Medical School and the Cancer Research Network to determine optimal public communication for the winding back of medical screening programs, where over-diagnosis and overtreatment may be problematic.
Dr Hamid Arandiyan will work with the Faculty of Science and Sydney Nano Institute to further knowledge on heterogeneous catalysis, which can be used for greener fuels.
Dr Rosemary Grey will work with the Sydney Law School and Sydney Southeast Asia Centre to conduct the first comprehensive gender assessment of the ‘Khmer Rouge Tribunal’, whose mandate is to prosecute genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and other offences committed in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979.
Dr Zac Chatterton will work with the Sydney Medical School and the Brain and Mind Centre to develop a new technique to monitor neurodegeneration in Frontotemporal Dementia and Motor Neurone Disease.
Dr Jonathan Danon from the Faculty of Science and the Brain and Mind Centre will work to discover new drugs for the diagnosis and treatment of frontotemporal dementia.
Dr Brigitte Sommer will work with the Faculty of Science and the Sydney Environment Institute to forecast the imminent invasion of tropical marine species along the New South Wales coastline.
Dr Sean Humphrey will work with the Faculty of Science and the Charles Perkins Centre to take new techniques to the clinic that can improve diagnosis and therapeutic targets for complex diseases.
Dr Deepak Jain will work with the Faculty of Science and Sydney Nano Institute to develop new materials that could be used in quantum computers as well as medical diagnostics and treatment.
Dr Anand Gururajan will work with the Sydney Medical School and the Brain and Mind Centre to develop better therapies for the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder.
Dr Stefan Oehlers will work with the Sydney Medical School and Marie Bashir Institute, studying zebrafish to understand tuberculosis and discover new drugs to treat infection.
