(no subject)
According to the archives I've been away for over 3 years.
Oh well.
I don't really have much to offer. No fanwork, no pictures, no insights, just me trying to sort out my thoughts.
Here's the situation:
- I finished a PhD in Quantitative Genetics in 4 years.
- I have been unemployed for the past 6 months.
- I have applied to no less than 20 postdoc positions and failed in all of these.
- I have also tried doing a course in genetics, hoping this would lead to a track in Masters in Genetic Counselling. I ended up failing at that, too, because... I guess the way they delivered the course material was so impersonal and isolating, it felt like I was fighting an uphill battle on my own. To the point where just thinking about the coursework made me go into panic.
- So.... now what?
I spoke to someone whom I was interested in doing a postdoc with, and what he basically told me (albeit kindly) was that... I am simply not cut out for a postdoc.
Once I snapped out of the feeling of having my hopes completely crushed, I guess I kind of realised, maybe he has a point.
Maybe I'm never going to be that inspiring scientist whom people turn to for advice and collaboration.
Maybe I should learn to live with that.
Maybe instead of going back and forth from hope to despair, I need to step back and think about the skills I have right now. And the type of opportunities I could get from them.
To summarise, here is a list of things I can do:
- I am very, very good at analysing things. Quantitatively. Scientifically. Objectively (to an extent... you can make statistics say almost anything you want it to)
- I am also good at computers. I know programming languages. I write and adapt scripts. I know MS Office like the back of my hand. And I can always learn more as the job demands.
- I have experience reseraching psychology, statistics, computing, and have a basic knowledge in biology and genetics.
- I get shit done. I have bulldozed over and maneouvered around obstacles to reach goals.
- I'm organised and multitask well.
- I love learning new things and retain information easily.
- I like people. I'm introverted, but talking to people brings me out of a funk faster than anything, provided they're not abusive or toxic. I absolutely delight in working with people from different cultures.
- I know how to look the part (which may not be as important in some jobs).
I've looked at some "alternative career paths for PhDs" articles and overall the general advice seems to point toward marketing/finanical analyses. Which I can kind of see myself doing, but... is it really feasible for someone with zero experience in business? Aren't employers just going to take one look at my CV and be all "this chick doesn't even have an MBA, hahaha" ?
I don't know.
Perhaps, after all that hard work, all I am good enough for is a line cook in a burrito shop.
Oh well.
I don't really have much to offer. No fanwork, no pictures, no insights, just me trying to sort out my thoughts.
Here's the situation:
- I finished a PhD in Quantitative Genetics in 4 years.
- I have been unemployed for the past 6 months.
- I have applied to no less than 20 postdoc positions and failed in all of these.
- I have also tried doing a course in genetics, hoping this would lead to a track in Masters in Genetic Counselling. I ended up failing at that, too, because... I guess the way they delivered the course material was so impersonal and isolating, it felt like I was fighting an uphill battle on my own. To the point where just thinking about the coursework made me go into panic.
- So.... now what?
I spoke to someone whom I was interested in doing a postdoc with, and what he basically told me (albeit kindly) was that... I am simply not cut out for a postdoc.
Once I snapped out of the feeling of having my hopes completely crushed, I guess I kind of realised, maybe he has a point.
Maybe I'm never going to be that inspiring scientist whom people turn to for advice and collaboration.
Maybe I should learn to live with that.
Maybe instead of going back and forth from hope to despair, I need to step back and think about the skills I have right now. And the type of opportunities I could get from them.
To summarise, here is a list of things I can do:
- I am very, very good at analysing things. Quantitatively. Scientifically. Objectively (to an extent... you can make statistics say almost anything you want it to)
- I am also good at computers. I know programming languages. I write and adapt scripts. I know MS Office like the back of my hand. And I can always learn more as the job demands.
- I have experience reseraching psychology, statistics, computing, and have a basic knowledge in biology and genetics.
- I get shit done. I have bulldozed over and maneouvered around obstacles to reach goals.
- I'm organised and multitask well.
- I love learning new things and retain information easily.
- I like people. I'm introverted, but talking to people brings me out of a funk faster than anything, provided they're not abusive or toxic. I absolutely delight in working with people from different cultures.
- I know how to look the part (which may not be as important in some jobs).
I've looked at some "alternative career paths for PhDs" articles and overall the general advice seems to point toward marketing/finanical analyses. Which I can kind of see myself doing, but... is it really feasible for someone with zero experience in business? Aren't employers just going to take one look at my CV and be all "this chick doesn't even have an MBA, hahaha" ?
I don't know.
Perhaps, after all that hard work, all I am good enough for is a line cook in a burrito shop.