Become a Beckman faculty member
Empowering power collaborators
The Beckman Institute is the home of collaborative research on a variety of topics related to science and technology. It offers space, core research facilities and staff support for administrative tasks such as proposal development, grant processing, visa processing, IT support, and more. Faculty members thrive on bringing together different disciplines to create new ideas.
The Beckman Institute embodies a unique research ecosystem that is defined by an interdisciplinary and collaborative approach to scientific inquiry.
Beckman members are expected to be engaged and present members of the Beckman community. Physical presence in the space is essential to the human, in-person interactions – whether in the café, office spaces, meeting rooms, or hallways – that drive innovation and discovery.
Members are also expected to embrace the institute’s core values of excellence, collaboration, integrity, transdisciplinarity, exploration and diversity.
Beckman’s research portfolio falls into three themes: Intelligent Systems, Integrative Imaging, and Molecular Science and Engineering. Scientists whose work has the potential to advance interdisciplinary research both within and across these themes will have priority for space assignments within the institute.
The process for joining Beckman
For faculty members already on campus
The interested person should email the following to the Beckman director:
- A curriculum vitae
- An endorsement letter from a faculty sponsor within the research theme or working group the researcher hopes to join
- A letter of interest, detailing:
- the basis of the researcher’s interest
- how affiliation with the institute could be beneficial to both the institute and the individual
- a description of office and laboratory space needs with special attention to how the faculty member would benefit from shared facilities and infrastructure offered within the institute
The director will consult with that theme or research community leader. Their decision will consider several factors, including:
- Beckman’s mission and core values
- the availability of space
- the alignment of the faculty member’s research interests with institute priorities
- research quality, interdisciplinarity and productivity
For faculty members being recruited to Illinois
The department head, sometimes in concert with the relevant college, should send the materials listed above to the Beckman director. The director will use the same decision-making process when considering membership and space for the potential faculty member.
Spaces available for assignment
See a list of the types of space available for both labs and offices.
What it means to be a Beckman Institute faculty member
Beckman faculty members are expected to follow Beckman’s mission and core values. They’re evaluated on:
- research productivity, excellence, funding
- record of collaboration
They should:
- list the Beckman Institute as an affiliated organization in publications and presentations
- acknowledge the Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation on publications co-authored with a Beckman Institute Graduate Fellow or Postdoctoral Fellow.
- mention Beckman in news releases about work conducted at the institute
Three levels of membership at Beckman
- Full-time faculty members conduct most of their research within Beckman and have an office at the institute.
- Part-time faculty members conduct some research at Beckman. Many times, they will have a shared office at the institute.
- Affiliate faculty members, whose interests complement Beckman’s research, conduct their research elsewhere on campus. They often collaborate with full- and part-time Beckman faculty members.
All University of Illinois faculty members have a home unit on campus.
Grant processing at Beckman
Faculty members are encouraged to run their multidisciplinary grants through the Beckman Institute Business Office, as long as a majority of the proposed research will be conducted at Beckman. Doing so earns Beckman a portion of facilities and administration cost recovery, and does not change the amount of F&A returned to the faculty member’s home unit.
Elements of good standing
Requirements for a faculty member to be in good standing at the Beckman Institute include several areas of activity and achievement, including acknowledging the Beckman Institute and its core facilities (when appropriate) in your published research. Review Beckman Institute policies for more information.