I was also angered by the negative tone of the whole section on postdocs, and
not only because so few women were represented. This whole thing took on
a personal resonation with me, since I'm in the same situation. After 6
years of graduate school, 2 good postdocs, I find I'm unmarketable (at least
in the Balto/Wash area). Can't teach--have no teaching experience; can't
work for industry--no industrial experience; can't do academic research--
no grant writing experience (except for postdoc fellowships). My current
plan is to go back to school and get teaching credentials and teach high
school. Any advice?
This situation in regards to women leaking out of the pipeline is also
discussed in a more scholarly way in the latest issue of Science (the one
where the identification of a potential breast cancer gene is discussed).
Thanks for letting me flame.
Anne
Anne Rosenwald
arosen at helix.nih.gov
/
I was also angered by the negative tone of the whole section on postdocs, and
not only because so few women were represented. This whole thing took on
a personal resonation with me, since I'm in the same situation. After 6
years of graduate school, 2 good postdocs, I find I'm unmarketable (at least
in the Balto/Wash area). Can't teach--have no teaching experience; can't
work for industry--no industrial experience; can't do academic research--
no grant writing experience (except for postdoc fellowships). My current
plan is to go back to school and get teaching credentials and teach high
school. Any advice?
This situation in regards to women leaking out of the pipeline is also
discussed in a more scholarly way in the latest issue of Science (the one
where the identification of a potential breast cancer gene is discussed).
Thanks for letting me flame.
Anne
Anne Rosenwald
arosen at helix.nih.gov
/
I UNDERSTAND YOUR FRUSTRATION, ALTHOUGH I NEVER MADE IT AS FAR AS YOU HAVE.
I WAS WORKING ON A DOCTORATE AND HAD COMPLETED 2 YEARS OF COURSEWORK WHEN MY
HUSBAND'S JOB SITUATION CHANGED (THERE WAS NO LONGER A JOB) AND I HAD TO
LEAVE SCHOOL "TEMPORARILY" TO SUPPORT US AND OUR YOUNG CHILD. I STARTED
TEACHING ON A PROVISIONAL CERTIFICATION. I HAD TO GO BACK TO SCHOOL AT NIGHT
TO GET THE EDUCATION COURSES I HAD NEVER TAKEN. IN ORDER TO BE PAID AT THE
MASTER'S DEGREE LEVEL, I HAD TO TAKE OVER 4O HOURS OF EDUCATION COURSES.
I TAUGHT IN PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOLS IN GA AND NC FOR 6 YEARS. I FINALLY DECIDED
THAT I JUST COULDN'T KEEP ON TEACHING IN THAT CLIMATE. THE MAJORITY OF THE
"REGULAR" LEVEL STUDENTS (ONLY TEACHERS WHO HAVE BEEN IN A SCHOOL FOREVER GET
THE TOP LEVEL STUDENTS--REGARDLESS OF QUALIFICATION OR KNOWLEDGE OF MATERIAL)
HAVE LITTLE OR NO RESPECT FOR THE TEACHERS AND LITTLE OR NO DESIRE TO LEARN.
SO...NOW I AM A TECHNICIAN AT AN EXPERIMENT STATION LOCATED 4.5 HOURS FROM
THE NEAREST UNIVERSITY OFFERING DOCTORAL PROGRAMS IN THE FIELD I WANT. I'M
PAID AT THE LEVEL OF A B.S., BUT HAVE AN M.S. AND OVER 12O ADDITIONAL
QUARTER HOURS. I CAN'T EVEN TEACH AT THE JUNIOR COLLEGE HERE BECAUSE THEY WILL
ONLY HIRE PHD'S. MY BEST ADVICE TO ANY WOMAN WHO WANTS A PARTICULAR CAREER
IS DON'T EVEN DATE UNTIL YOU HAVE THE EDUCATION AND JOB YOU WANT. I REALIZE
THAT I'VE RAMBLED ON. THANKS FOR THE OUTLET.
