Questions tagged [early-career]
On issues affecting academics or researchers specifically in the early stages of their careers.
210
questions
13
votes
6answers
969 views
What should I do if my parents are forcing me to study a career I don't want? [on hold]
I want to study biotechnology and become an engineer. I'm a straight A's student and as the eldest daughter I'm quite disciplined. However, my parents don't want me to study that career and are ...
1
vote
0answers
41 views
My R01 application was re-assigned to a study section that doesn't seem like a good fit (NIH)
I submitted my first ever R01 application a few weeks ago and indicated that it be assigned to a specific study section (let's call it study section A). Yesterday, I received an email from the chief ...
18
votes
3answers
3k views
Would preaching in a church be advantageous for becoming a lecturer?
In general, the job of a lecturer (under Australian terminology- I think the terminology is different in America) can be divided up into two main areas of focus: research and teaching, with the latter ...
4
votes
2answers
209 views
How important is teaching experience?
I am a PhD student in economics in the UK. Recently, I have been hearing how important teaching experience is to find a job in academia as a lecturer. One needs to submit teaching statements and may ...
3
votes
1answer
188 views
Personal qualities required for a career in academia? [closed]
I am looking to apply for research programmes after I complete my undergraduate degree. While I thoroughly enjoy research, I'm worried about whether this is the best field for me to pursue.
What ...
3
votes
2answers
918 views
PhD research results in postdoc talk presentation
I am a PhD candidate and have been invited to visit two labs where I had applied for postdoc positions after initial online interviews. My question is regarding the content of my talk, which I think ...
1
vote
1answer
231 views
What should one consider when pondering a career as a scientific editor? [closed]
I'm in my 2nd year postdoc, considering getting a science-related job. I looked for jobs at PhD level, and found that one of my options is becoming an editor for a scientific journal.
How many years'...
3
votes
1answer
90 views
Uploading paper drafts before first-time publication
I am half-way through a Masters degree in Logic and Philosophy of Science following a BSc in Astrophysics. Although I've dreamed for years about getting a paper published, I still haven't submitted ...
0
votes
0answers
61 views
Effectiveness of career counselling or career coaching
Many questions on this SE tends to have a flavour of career counselling or career coaching. I have seen a psychologist specialising in career counselling myself and found it a bit wanting. I have had ...
6
votes
1answer
155 views
Getting a Postdoc, Dropping out of PhD for Greener Pastures (I hope), or else Staying Competitive in Current Position
I've seen similar questions on here before so I'm sorry if it's a duplicate or anything.
Frequently, I find myself in despair at my postdoc prospects as a result of the reputation of the university ...
4
votes
1answer
174 views
Is it appropriate to ask for a $220k piece of equipment on an ESI R01 application to the NIH?
I'm an early stage investigator (ESI) working on an NIH-R01 application where I am proposing a good amount of experiments that necessitate this piece of equipment that costs $220,000. This piece of ...
1
vote
1answer
43 views
What affiliation(s) to list in an oral presentation at a conference?
I'm a doctoral candidate at a big university and am teaching as an adjunct at a smaller university. I'll be graduating with my PhD in a few months and I'm hoping to get a tenure-track job at the ...
2
votes
1answer
147 views
Postdoc speculative application [closed]
I am just about to finish my PhD and a prof I know well and I were discussing future postdoc labs. They suggested I email a friend of theirs in the US. I got a very positive reply saying my research ...
3
votes
0answers
72 views
How to differentiate which conference to publish to? [closed]
There are many conferences, let's take example cryptography.
I assume it makes a difference if you publish at a good conference
as compared to a bad conference. The question is then: how do I find
...
15
votes
2answers
635 views
Husband and wife publishing together - Problem for tenure-track jobs?
My husband and I work in the same research area (of theoretical computer science). We were in the same PhD program and even had the same advisor. We are a great collaboration team, and really enjoy ...
2
votes
1answer
223 views
How many postdocs should one usually do before it is realistically possible to get a faculty position? [closed]
I am interested in the amount of postdocs one usually has to do before one gets a "good" faculty position while considering the apparent differences in various academic disciplines.
6
votes
3answers
266 views
Research Assistant Professor vs Post-doc
Recently, I have completed my PhD in Biomedical Engineering from a 25 - 30th ranked USA university and got a Post-doc offer from a 9-12th ranked USA University. To keep me, my PhD advisor offered me ...
1
vote
1answer
162 views
How to find collaborators?
Answers to my previous question made me believe that doing research almost exclusively in collaboration is (also) fine.
But how do I find collaborators. It is easy to find researchers active in a ...
0
votes
1answer
121 views
Can leader position in a team make up for post-doc experience?
Well, the situation is following - I'm doing my Ph.D. currently abroad, while still having a position in my home country. It's not a high-ranked university there, but the research institute itself is ...
7
votes
3answers
3k views
Questions about authorship rank and academic politics
Disclaimer! I am a first year CS/Applied math master student so I do understand very little in how academia works. I am trying to fix it before I go into PhD.
I have discovered a scientist who works ...
17
votes
10answers
7k views
First-year PhD giving a talk among well-established researchers in the field
I am currently a first-year Ph.D. student, before that (as I have posted about before) I was forced to leave my Ph.D. program after one year because of a bullying supervisor. Previously, I made a good ...
1
vote
1answer
90 views
As an independent/non-affiliated researcher, what would I replace a logo with on a business card?
I'm currently not affiliated with any academic institution; but - I still get around, interact and need some business cards.
The thing is, without any institutional information, a card tends to look ...
11
votes
2answers
3k views
Struggling to present results from long papers in short time slots
Most of my work thus far comprises two rather long and detailed papers that rely on a common underlying framework. (I know this is not great for a young academic, but it is what it is right now.) ...
1
vote
1answer
64 views
Presenting a survey/review paper at a conference
I have noticed that senior members of the community often present survey-like work at conferences, especially if they are giving a plenary lecture or have an extended time slot in a mini-symposium.
I ...
1
vote
1answer
132 views
What is the difference between early career research positions [closed]
I am looking for the differences between the following positions:
Researcher
Postdoctoral fellow
Postdoctoral researcher
6
votes
1answer
273 views
Is it possible to find an unpaid and “half-time” postdoc?
I've defended my thesis, and I would like to do my postdoc abroad. But the problem is that I am married, and I have two little children. So, I can't just leave my family for a couple of years, and ...
30
votes
3answers
4k views
Pros and cons of writing a book review?
I am a postdoc in a biology department. I am friends with a professor in the philosophy department who is the editor of a Nature journal which publishes book reviews. A 150-page popular science book ...
11
votes
2answers
473 views
As a post-doc, should I pursue incremental research or revolutionary research?
I've recently finished my PhD (the field almost doesn't matter, but applied mathematics if it helps), and begun a 3 year grant-funded postdoc with a heavy but very flexible research emphasis, in the ...
2
votes
0answers
151 views
Why do some states have such opposite patterns of mobility for science and non-science PhDs?
The NSF conducts a survey of PhD recipients in the US. Among other things, they look at which states are attracting many new PhDs and which states PhDs are leaving. They break this data into science &...
3
votes
4answers
302 views
Bad data - how to move on successfully
I work in an interdisciplinary field. My input is not generated by myself, but by talented people that I trust and that trust me to analyse their data and generate fascinating insights.
But here I am,...
10
votes
5answers
3k views
Didn't attend field-specific conferences during my PhD; how much of a disadvantage is it?
During my mechanical engineering PhD, I was not able to go to my field specific conferences and had to go to diverse conferences. Thus, I couldn't interact with researchers directly in my field of ...
0
votes
1answer
224 views
How much does the PhD degree name matter when landing in a job?
I am considering doing a PhD in a great lab/with a great advisor (and already convinced the PI). But I got in another program rather than the supposed program with the name of my subject of study, e.g....
3
votes
5answers
408 views
Is it better to have a strong thesis, or to follow personal interests during PhD?
I'm a second year US PhD student in applied math. For the last year I've been working on one project with my advisor and another one of her students. We have also started a collaboration with a ...
1
vote
1answer
173 views
Is it possible to get a researcher position in a prestigious institute with a degree from a not very well-ranked university? [duplicate]
I'm currently in the 2nd year of my Ph.D. and I'm really interested in my future career options. I'm attending a double-degree study programme in two European universities, none of them being among ...
6
votes
1answer
199 views
How to prepare academically-minded students and postdocs for the eventuality of not finding secure academic employment?
Graduate students and postdocs are predominantly trained to be -- and driven by the prospect of becoming -- full-time academics. For a majority of them, there comes a point of reckoning when they ...
0
votes
1answer
69 views
Accepting a scholarship for masters just to get the money and fund a future masters
I have been offered a scholarship for a masters in theoretical physics at my home university, the scholarship covers the fees along with a decent stipend but I would rather pursue a masters in maths ...
2
votes
1answer
139 views
Passive discouragement and less supportive senior colleagues: What should I do?
I am a budding scientist (27 y/o, Doctoral candidate) and a lecturer in a University. In the early stage of my career, I have achieved some significant milestones in my field. However, sometimes I ...
1
vote
1answer
148 views
What are the advantages of serving as an examiner for a MSc or PhD thesis?
As an early career researcher, I am curious to know the advantages of being an external or internal examiner for a thesis. How does it help you in your career? Since you are not being paid for the ...
5
votes
1answer
208 views
What practicable alternative do I have to not fly around the globe to present a poster/pollute environment? [duplicate]
Popularizing your research and results is an important part of a non-tenured researcher, which alreday and often starts after graduating with a bachelor and proceeds up to being a postdoc for many ...
2
votes
0answers
119 views
Fermi problem: How much of the published primary literature is never cited and will this number increase relatively? [closed]
I stumbled over this to me interesting Q&A solving a fermi question by estimating the right order of magnitude. In the age of publish or perish in my opinion it becomes a crucial question for ...
1
vote
1answer
141 views
Applying for another job within same department?
I've been a postdoc for just under a year in a nice lab, and I have no problems with my boss or colleagues. However, another position has just come up in the same department, which fits way better ...
4
votes
4answers
723 views
Is it possible to become a tenure track Assistant Professor at the same university where I did Post Doc?
I know that there is such thing as "intellectual incest" and that many universities are against hiring their own PhD graduates for their faculty positions.
But what about the movement from being a ...
63
votes
12answers
21k views
Why do so many PhDs choose to join academia instead of industry given the pay in academia is considerably lower and the workload is much heavier? [closed]
In the computer science field, an entry-level software engineer in top-tier tech companies (e.g. Google, Facebook, etc.) could earn as much as a 20-year experience professor. And the workload in ...
7
votes
1answer
394 views
After 3 years… Should I stay at a PhD position that I think is holding back my thesis?
I was supposed to do my thesis in a research department of a company in the field of computational science (developing new computational methods that they could use to design and engineer ...
4
votes
2answers
676 views
What should the startup package consist of at US (primarily) undergraduate institutions?
What should one list in the startup funds if you are taking up a tenure-track position at a public undergraduate university in the US, mostly focused on teaching? I'm asking specifically for ...
5
votes
3answers
2k views
Competitiveness and Success Caliber in Academia [closed]
Every day, I am figuring out that competitiveness in academia is high. Of course, there are thousands of academics, but only a small number really make an impact with outstanding research.
My goal --...
18
votes
6answers
3k views
Postdoc with a professor retiring soon
I am starting a new postdoc position with a professor who's retiring soon (<5 yrs, judging from the grad intake).
I am interested in pursuing an academic job and it worries me that I would not be ...
5
votes
6answers
280 views
Choosing an email address/provider for academic work as you change positons
I'm an on-again-off-again academic, I guess you could say: I've switched positions in and out of academia several times over the past decade. When I write academic papers (or even Free Software in the ...
24
votes
7answers
3k views
Should a graduate student accept random offer to be a reviewer for IEEE Transactions paper?
I have been asked by a well-established professor to review a regular paper submitted to IEEE Transactions, however, I am concerned as in the email, he titled me "Dr. Monkia" although I am still being ...
3
votes
1answer
260 views
A PhD thesis without any publication [closed]
I am currently a Ph.D student(computational maths) works in a theory. I will be graduating in the next year. I have one paper which I will be submitting soon and working one more paper. One of my ...
