INDEX OF ARTICLES
Last
month , I told you how the termination of my current research
contract is rapidly approaching, how my last iron is in the fire,
and that the funder of last resort, as it were, has decided not to
cough up. I am, scientifically speaking, penniless and, for the
moment at least, without any means to continue researching.
Temporary unemployment presents an unparalleled chance for
change and for wiping your slate clean.
My first career, before I decided to reinvent myself as a
scientist, came to a
premature end . In that case -- unlike this one -- it was a
conscious decision to leave a profession that I simply didn't like.
That this current scenario is enforced -- I have no choice about
whether to stay or go -- is made all the more painful by the fact
that I've grown into this career as much as I'd outgrown the old
one. Does this sound bleak and depressing?
A temporary spell on a desert island
It's not. You see, my impending lack of funding
willnotmean the end of my scientific career, because I don't
intend to let it. After the life-changing stormy seas of my PhD,
I've just had my first experience of clear blue water -- my first
postdoc job -- and I'm hooked. Now I'm not about to discard my
10-year investment in science at this, the first financial
discontinuity I have faced. No, I believe the end of this contract
will shipwreck me for just a temporary spell on a desert island. I
aim to be back into the fray soon.
My situation is not uncommon. I have a colleague, who, a few
years ago, languished for half-a-year, unwanted, in the ranks of
the unemployed. But she managed to get back into science by
doggedly pursuing all the relevant opportunities and never losing
faith in her own ability, and has remained employed as a scientist
ever since. Her story is encouraging.
The run-up to the end of this contract bestows me with a
heightened clarity of thought about my career options. There's
nothing like a crisis to sharpen the senses and get you to look
around, if only to figure out where the exits are. I have been
head-down and focused, sailing along my own research course for
seven years now. It is time for a change.
Here's rule one for anyone facing a similar situation: free
yourself from your scientific past. Of course there is always pain
involved in letting the past go. We scientists react similarly to
many of our fellow creative professionals: artists, designers, and
the like. We get personally involved with our work. The downside?
The painful realisation that walking away from a project will toll
the death knell for your future, already dreamed, research plans.
This is especially hard when you know that it's only a matter of
time before someone else makes the connection and does the very
same experiment you had planned to do.
Yet, now that I've had some time to reflect, I've realised that
what I regarded as my own research was never my own, not really. It
just started out as an extension of my former PhD adviser's area of
interest. How naïve I was to consider this work my own!
I am inspired by the many personal testimonies I have heard from
successful scientists who have jumped ship at this same stage in
their careers. The seven years I have had at the bench may seem a
long time, but all things considered, I am still at quite an early
stage in my career. I am, thus, potentially at a rather massive
watershed.
Rule two in this journey: try to see an opportunity when one
comes along. Temporary unemployment presents an unparalleled chance
for change and for wiping your slate clean. Yes, call an end to
grieving over those "wish-I-had-the-time" experiments that we all
torment ourselves about. They are now firmly in the category of
"never-to-be-completed."
The funny thing is that I am surprisingly relieved. I am, for
now, unburdened by any constraints -- it's an explorer's dream
again -- and it feels great. It's also reassuring to consider that
it might actually be in my best interest to opt for a dramatic
change of direction during my postdoc days. This could actually
make my résumé look good.
Get your name out there
OK, so what am I doing about making the change? My third and
final rule: make the break and get your name out there. I've
already made a start by getting myself listed as a co-worker on two
grant proposals, both as unrelated to my previous work as they are
to each other. I have also registered my availability with all the
group leaders I know who might be interested in employing me and my
skills on any grant-supported projects they have in the pipeline. I
just have to wait to see where the cards will fall. I feel rather
like a hired gun, waiting to see who will come up with the cash
that will fund my next postdoc position.
In the meantime, whilst I play the waiting game, I have some
loose ends to tie up. I'm spending these last few weeks of my
contract finalising and finishing off all the experiments I've been
working on. I'm also busy archiving all my little tidbits of
research, just in case I have the opportunity to fiddle around on
the odd Friday afternoon when my next job comes along. I am also
about to submit two major papers.
There are two reasons why I need to crack on with this now.
First, I want to secure a place for this work in the literature
before I move on to new things. Second, I don't want to have to
work on these papers unpaid. With all this last minute business, I
reckon I'll drop from fatigue when the first day of unemployment
eventually comes along.
By then, I'll have to think about how to feed and clothe my
family through the long hot summer of austerity. Anyway, I'm hoping
it will be a long hot summer -- at least I'll be able to fill in my
application forms on the beach. Next month, I'll let you know how I
get on presenting myself as a highly qualified but unemployed
perpetual-student type at the local state benefits office. Now
that's going to be interesting. So stay tuned.