I’ve been mulling over writing about my experience on going from a bright-eyed aspiring academic to learning that the ivory tower that is academia is not all that it is made out to be.
Reading about so many people jumping out of the academia train brought me to finally do it. The academia train moves at an excruciatingly slow pace, but there’s so many people in the cabins that it’s hard to hold on; especially when you have people actively kicking your knuckles or using your arms to leverage themselves further up the cabin. Once you’ve fallen, it’s nearby impossible to find a space to grab on to. Sound familiar?
All-too!
Much like that train analogy, my decision to make a conscious decision to get on with my life took a little too long. Ever the optimist, I always thought that if I worked hard then there’s no way my CV could be ignored, it’s all about the papers and the science. Right? Wrong!
It has taken me a fine 6 years of trying my hardest in academia to give myself a lot more credit than any of the delusional dinosaurs in academia are going to. I turned my back on academics and academia in general because there isn’t anything there for people who want to make a real difference, and let me tell you – it has been the best decision I have ever made.
I am happier mentally, socially, financially, and professionally. My role in industry pays more than any professor will ever get paid, and the work that I do makes an ACTUAL impact. I have found that, refreshingly, people in industry value the fact that you have a PhD far far more than anyone in academia will – cheap lab-rat anyone?! Not only that, but the opportunities are frequent and plentiful. I have a realistic chance of promotion out here. Who knew?!
Take this as a wake-up call. Academia is dead/dying.
If you think this means that I am trying to put you off from doing that research project or PhD. Nope, I think you should absolutely go for it; roles in the commercial sector value the transferrable skills you learn during your PhD, and it will open up a much better pay-scale to you, if you have the doctorate. But I think that you’d make a dire mistake if you spent contract after contract as a post-doc. If after the first post-doc there seems to be a difficulty in getting that next grant or finding a position my honest advice is drop it and pivot. If it hasn’t happened already, it will only get worse. Get out while you still can.
While you’re here, though, I want to share my experience of my PhD (since no one is the same) and then my transition from post-doc to post-Ac. Here’s to never considering going back…