To postdoc or not to postdoc

I am no Shakespeare expert to delve deep and meaningfully into Hamlet, or any play really, but I am here to tell you that the tension, heart-ache, and endless questioning of this scene resonates.

As an idealistic graduate student and then as an exhausted Ph.D. I never doubted that I would need a postdoc. Everyone in the department had assured me that an academic postdoc, at a top tear research institution, was the only way to get a coveted tenure-track position. Who was I to question them. So I interviewed on the phone, via video, and in person till I got the offer that literally brought tears to my eyes. A lab with name recognition, in my field, at a top 10 Medical School had accepted me. I imagined developing a research program that would grant me high impact publications, create networking opportunities, and would open the door to my academic career.

This was naive, and within a matter of months I was questioning everything.

Around the 1-year mark I came to realize an important truth; less than 25% of the postdoc research army I was part of was actively using their fellowship as a bridge the rest of us were in a forced holding pattern. PI's were jealously keeping postdocs, who had been working for years before I joined the lab, even longer than the NIH recommended 5-year limit.

It was a wake up call. Here's what it took me almost 3-years to figure out.

The point of a postdoc is to get a permanent position.

Don't linger. A postdoc is a temporary position and you should treat it that way. If you are on your way to industry a 1-year postdoc or no postdoc at all is standard. If you are trying to learn a new skill or work in a new field a longer postdoc makes sense. A 5+-year postdoc only makes sense to me if you are working on a rare disease clinical trial or an extend time course.

Get the most out of your "trainee" position as possible.

Try everything. As a grad student, a fellow, or a postdoc you are given leave to learn. You are often encouraged to attend talks or conferences, take your institution up on this offer. I cannot stress enough how much you should work the system while you are in a "trainee" position. If there are on informational interviews, job fairs, resume courses, etc happening then you should be there. Yes, of course you should be working on your project, but these are opportunities that people pay money for at big conferences... don't just ignore them.

Start trying to get out of your postdoc ASAP.

Don't wait. I didn't start really thinking about what I was going to do after my postdoc till I was nearing the 2-year mark. I don't recommend waiting that long. There is nothing wrong with knowing what is out there even if you are not ready to leave... yet. I got my current job after attending a biotech startup fair, on a lark, and treating my interview as a practice run. You don't have to say yes to the first job offer, but you won't get one if you don't apply.

In absolute honesty I took the safe road (I got the postdoc, my name on high impact publications, and then a job) but I bargained my confidence, my mental health, and my credit score to do it. Yes, my postdoc allowed me to attach a fancy university name to mine, but at work my peer skipped the postdoc and went straight to industry. We now have the same title and salary. I cannot tell you what to do, but let me bring this back to Hamlet for a quick second "...to grunt and sweat under a weary life, but that the dread of something... makes us rather bear those ills we have than fly to others that we know not of?"

Do not be afraid to take a different path!

#BeBrave #PostDoc #STEM #ScienceJobs