Postdocs are required to have an initial meeting within 90 days of their appointment start date, and annual appointments within one year from the date of the previous meeting. In this system we record the date of the meetings and get confirmation from sponsors that meetings took place on the date entered by postdoc. We do NOT collect the IDPs themselves. While postdocs have one faculty sponsor who is responsible for their training, postdocs may have many number of additional mentors to help provide them with the background they need for success. The IDP is conducted with the sponsor, but if postdocs have chosen to ask another PI to serve as their mentor, the IDP provides an excellent framework to guide that postdoc/mentor relationship, too. Postdocs are required to hold IDP meetings with their sponsor; they are encouraged to hold IDP meetings with any mentors.
FAQ
Should I enter the dates of my previous IDPs?
Yes, but enter them starting with the oldest and working your way forward, chronologically. The logic of the coding is set to start from the beginning of your appointment and work forward in time; if you attempt to work backwards (start with a meeting in 2020, then try to enter one from 2019), the system will throw an error that will require OPA to manually update.
Who do I contact if I need help or have a question?
Contact your departmental postdoc admin or kwheller@stanford.edu
Should I send you my IDP?
No. Do not send us your IDP. This system only tracks the dates of your meeting -- not the content of your IDP. That remains confidential, between you and your sponsor.
Is this optional?
No, it's a requirement.
How do I run a report?
Use the navigation bar at the top of the screen: "Meetings --> All Meetings" to search for all meetings. Scroll to the bottom of the list and click the orange "CSV" button.
Something doesn't look right in my records; can you fix it?
Probably. Email kwheller@stanford.edu for help.
I'm a postdoc admin and I'm processing a 6th year request. When you ask for the complete list of all the PI's IDP records, do you want just the PI's records for the postdoc in question, or all the PI's IDP records for all of their postdocs, past and present?
All PI IDP records for all postdocs.
I'm a postdoc admin and I'm processing a 6th year request. I noticed that some of the PI's records are incomplete. How can I provide you the records if they're incomplete?
Go to the PI's page in the IDP system, where all their meetings (confirmed and unconfirmed) are listed. Print that page to .pdf. Submit that .pdf.