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Recent Posts
- How do THEY do it all? June 25, 2019
- Book Club – The Autobiography of a Transgender Scientist April 29, 2019
- How to welcome a new person to your department March 29, 2019
- I Am Not an Easy Man March 21, 2019
- Navigating lab in a wheelchair March 13, 2019
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Author Archives: ragamuffinphd
The Three-Postdoc Postdoc
This new year, I will be starting a new job. Sort of. This will be my third postdoc in as many years. Because my first mentor left the institution one year after I started (coinciding with the birth of my … Continue reading
Posted in academia, confidence, Laboratory, motherhood, postdoc, Women in STEM
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Justifying your time
In assessing my mental state over the 8 months that I have been in this new postdoc position, I have observed a trend. It’s not good. I spend a great deal of mental energy — from the time I drop … Continue reading
The Six Month Postdoc Evaluation
I started an academic postdoc position 6 months ago, as a new mom reeling partly from maternity leave and partly from the conditions of leaving my previous postdoc. When I started this position, I wrote about how terrified and isolated … Continue reading
Motherhood has changed my perspective on my career
Motherhood has changed my perspective on my career. (gasp!) During graduate school, everyone told me that this would be a bad thing. It would be a sign of failure if growing a family altered my career objectives. I have decided … Continue reading
Posted in academia, alternative career, efficiency, motherhood, postdoc, women in science
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New Mom in a New Job
I had no idea what to expect during my first week back to work after maternity leave at a brand new job. Just before my son was born, I landed a new academic postdoc position after being ousted from my … Continue reading
Posted in academia, female scientist, motherhood, new job, postdoc
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New Year, New Job, New Working Mom: My First Week
Whose idea was it to start baby’s daycare and mom’s new job on the same day? I have been a mom for 4 months. My son has been through two surgeries, chronic issues with cranial helmet therapy, gone from remarkably … Continue reading
Posted in academia, female scientist, motherhood, new job, postdoc, Uncategorized
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When Your Pregnancy is a Job Hunt, or The Amazing Community of Women in Science Part II
Several months ago, I wrote about the experience of being 5 months pregnant and told that my postdoctoral mentor was leaving our institution. This was my chance to leave my oppressive pit of a working environment without burning any bridges. … Continue reading
When Your Postdoc Mentor Switches Institutions, or The Amazing Community of Women in Science
I am 9 months into my first postdoc. I am 6 months pregnant. I will be unemployed two days after my son is due to be born. One month ago, my postdoc mentor announced that he has accepted an incredible … Continue reading
A Tale of Three Labs: Reflections on Environment Dynamics
Sticking to the scenario in which I am a fish, I’d like to reflect on having been a variably sized fish in various sizes of pond… and learning to swim in corresponding tides. In this metaphor, ponds have tides. Before … Continue reading
Posted in academia, advice, Laboratory, postdoc
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A Portrait of the Scientist as a Young Woman 