The Beckman Institute leadership team assigns both laboratory and office space to its research themes, research groups, faculty members and internal units.

Space assignments in the Beckman Institute will be reviewed periodically and may change with institute priorities and the activity of the research groups assigned to the space. Underused spaces will be reassigned, and alternate space arrangements will be pursued for research programs for which a disciplinary setting would be more appropriate.

For those who want to join Beckman and use space here, please find more information about that process.

Faculty and staff who are already Beckman members requesting space should email to Beckman Space Requests. You'll receive a form requesting more information. Once you submit it,  Beckman's Space Assignment Committee will discuss. The committee meets weekly.

Laboratory spaces available for assignment

Specialized laboratory facilities

Includes laboratories designed to accommodate specific research activities. Examples include rooms:

• That accommodate laser spectroscopy research on the third floor
• Suites that accommodate magnetic resonance imaging
• Shielded spaces for multi-electrode recording

Wet laboratories

These include laboratories for chemistry and biological sciences that require substantial bench work. Those working in wet laboratory environments will not have their desks in the laboratory space.

Dry laboratories

Includes labs used for computer workstations, robotics, human participant interview spaces and similar facilities. Such facilities are intended to be highly flexible in their assignment. The Space Assignment Committee expects graduate students to have their desk accommodations in the dry laboratory spaces assigned to their respective research programs.

Shared laboratory facilities

Includes cold rooms, warm rooms, darkrooms and other similar general-purpose laboratory spaces. Whenever possible, these spaces should be shared, rather than assigned for the exclusive use of a single individual or research group.

One person will usually be designated as in charge of the space. They will coordinate use, cleaning and so on. In some instances, exclusive use of a facility will be granted to maintain the integrity of the experimental work.

Office space assignments

Eligibility

Faculty must be full or part-time faculty members to use office space at Beckman.

Graduate students must be:

• the research assistant or advisee of a faculty member with a full-time presence in the institute
• have a demonstrable need to be co-located with the faculty adviser
• or the research assistant or advisee of a faculty member with a part-time presence in the institute and working on a topic related to the adviser’s institute activities

For academic and professional personnel, the amount of space allocated should be based on the nature of their responsibilities, the need for privacy and other related considerations.

Visitors of faculty status or equivalent, who spend from a few days to an academic year or longer in the institute, are also eligible for office space.

Single occupancy offices

Those eligible:

• Faculty whose primary research home is the Beckman Institute and who do not maintain a single-occupied faculty office in another facility
• Academic and professional personnel whose responsibilities require privacy and whose activities are primarily occurring at Beckman

Double occupancy offices

Those eligible:

• faculty with a shared presence between the institute and a home department in which another office is maintained
• Academic and professional personnel whose primary responsibilities do not require privacy and activities are split with other locations
• Senior postdoctoral researchers, when space permits
• Visitors of faculty status or equivalent. They will always be assigned to a double occupancy office
• Institute faculty affiliates (or a group desk within a double-occupancy office) if space is available and the extent of their presence in the institute merits it

Group occupancy

The most common group arrangement involves a desk assignment in the large office spaces across the hall from Beckman's laboratories.

Those eligible:

• institute faculty affiliates if the group desk space is not available and the extent of their presence in the institute merits it
• Graduate students, postdoctoral research associates and technicians who work in labs

Modular desks

Collaborative spaces located in some of Beckman's neighborhoods that allow multiple people to work together while also maximizing the use of the institute's space. Those eligible:

• Technicians whose primary activities occur in the laboratory
• Postdoctoral researchers, unless they are senior and space permits
• Graduate students, unless assigned to a large office space near the laboratory
• Other technical staff, unless assigned to a large office space near the laboratory