Published online 22 April 2009
Postdoc journal
Take a scientist to work?
Julia Boughner
Julia Boughner is a postdoc in evolutionary developmental biology at the University of Calgary, Canada.
Will academia kick me out before I nab my dream job?
I've often found that when the title of a research paper poses a question, the answer is ultimately 'no'. I discovered much the same when I posed a careers-experiment question: might a 'take a scientist to work' day be a good idea?
Last month, I set out explore my potential career 'plan B' — the world of industry consulting. I wanted to be proactive. In an effort to move beyond informational interviews, I sought to experience 'a day in the life' of successful consultants working in the life sciences.
To date, I have made two local freelance consultants scratch their heads over my request to visit them at work. Both declined my proposal, in part to protect client confidentiality and largely because their work simply involves hours hunched over a computer. Perhaps I have already collected as much useful information as possible from the people whose industry careers I'm thinking of emulating. Maybe my next move should be a riskier one: leave academia and become an intern at a consulting firm, and/or pursue a Master's of Business Administration.
But I'm not quite ready to change. My lab work is going well, I have many months left on my contract, and my mentors and colleagues continue to support me and assure me that that elusive tenure-track job will materialize. I've promised myself before: academia will have to 'kick me out' before I leave the work I love. But with the gloomy economy, will that be sooner rather than later? I hope the answer is 'no'.
Postdoc Journal Keepers 2009
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Julia BoughnerJulia Boughner is a postdoc in evolutionary developmental biology at the University of Calgary, Canada.
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Bryan VentersBryan Venters is a postdoc in biochemistry and molecular biology at Pennsylvania State University.
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Joanne IsaacJoanne Isaac was a postdoc studying the effect of climate change on biodiversity at James Cook University in Townsville, Australia. She is now in the United States so that her husband can complete a postdoc.
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Sam WalcottSam Walcott is a postdoc in theoretical biophysics at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland.
