Best Practices for Contacting a Potential Postdoc Supervisor When Planning to Accompany Spouse Abroad

Question

My spouse will soon start an internship in the US, and we are exploring options for me to join her. The financial limitations of her stipend mean that I would need to secure employment to support our stay. Coincidentally, I am completing my PhD and considering a postdoc position that could align with this timeline. I believe I could significantly contribute to her supervisor's lab, given my relevant skills and experience. I am contemplating a short-term (6-12 months) postdoc position with her supervisor, with the understanding that I might need to transition to remote work after the initial 6 months due to personal commitments back home. I have prior experience working remotely with positive outcomes and references. This plan is for the beginning of 2025, so there could be enough time to look for potential funding.

I seek advice on the best approach to propose this arrangement to the supervisor. Should the initial contact be made by me directly or through my spouse? Additionally, how common are such arrangements in academic settings, and what considerations should I be aware of to make my proposal as appealing and feasible as possible?

Answer 1

If you are seeking a job, then you should be contacting the faculty and asking yourself.

In terms of how common such arrangements are, not exceedingly, and I can tell you from my perspective why I would be hesitant to hire someone under these circumstances.

6-12 months is short for a postdoc. The typical postdoc lifecycle is 2 years. In that cycle, the first 6 months is getting up to speed, then you get 12 months of good productivity, and the last 6 months are applying for jobs and going to interview. Onboarding you for 6 months just so you leave would be unfortunate, as would paying you to be remote shortly thereafter. One of the values of postdocs is having them around for day-to-day interaction with the younger lab members.

The only time I personally do short postdocs is when I am bridging a graduate student to their next job (whether my own, or someone I know from the department). Nonetheless, the faculty in question may have the funds to do so, so certainly go ahead and ask.

While you may only see $30-$60K of salary (depending on 6 or 12 month contract), that could burn up over $100,000 of funding when factoring in overhead, health insurance and all the other extras you never see from your end. This is all to say, hiring a postdoc is not a casual, low-cost endeavor, so proposing a short stay, or one where you suddenly go remote may not come off as a particularly appealing way to spend $100,000+.

Answer 2

I might need to transition to remote work after the initial 6 months

I think you should abandon any idea of this part of your plan. It is very complex from a tax and administrative perspective to have employees in another country. Universities are not usually equipped for this, they are not multinational corporations, funding streams may explicitly disallow it, etc. An academic lab certainly cannot handle this on their own.

It has absolutely nothing to do with your personal remote work experience.