Holding a post-doctoral position before becoming a faculty member: Does it bring benefits for the scholarly enterprise?

Abstract

This article examines the effects that performing a post-doc early in the academic career have for the current scholarly practices of faculty members. Results show that performing a post-doc early in the academic career impacts positively the recent research output of academics, although not affecting the other faculty member's scholarly activities, namely teaching. The results also show that academics that did a post-doc engage in more regular information exchange dynamics with international peers than their colleagues that did not. This is particularly evident for the younger generations of scholars and for those who spent the post-doctoral period abroad. It is concluded that the post-doctoral period not only fosters a greater production of scientific outputs later in the academic career, but also leads to a greater integration into international scholarly communities. These benefits potentiate former post-docs to become key players in any scientific or higher education system. © Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2009.