Fraud alert – Beware of third-party scams purporting to offer Cornell post-doctoral placements or certificate programs

Cornell University recently has been made aware of fraudulent activity targeting overseas students and researchers, including at least one third party website falsely stating that it is offering a postdoctoral or visiting scholar program in association with Cornell. These scams, which may seek to obtain money and/or personal details from interested applicants, are fraudulent.

Cornell wishes to warn the public about these fraudulent activities being perpetrated purportedly in the name of Cornell, and/or its officials. Please be advised that:

• Cornell does not, nor has it, worked in collaboration with third-party companies or organizations to offer postdoctoral or research certificate programs.
• Third parties do not collect tuition or fees on behalf of Cornell.
• Cornell does not work with or endorse such organizations including, but not limited to, Shanghai Lufei Education Technology Co., Ltd. (Chinese name: 上海璐斐教育科技有限公司) and Shenzhen Guoyan Era Education Technology Co., Ltd. (Chinese name: 深圳市国研时代教育科技有限公司).

Cornell’s postdoctoral positions are listed on Cornell’s Academic Career Opportunities website and Cornell postdoctoral fellowship programs are listed on the Cornell Postdoctoral Fellowship Programs page. If you suspect a third party of falsely advertising a Cornell program, please notify globaloperations@cornell.edu. Victims of such scams may also report them to their local law enforcement authorities for appropriate action.

There are a number of ways to find a postdoc position. Some positions are advertised on the Cornell HR website.

Most often, postdocs positions are found by networking and contacting faculty directly.  A list of all departments can be found on Cornell’s website.