Remember, a popular definition of insanity is doing the same thing and
expecting a different result.
If school didn't give you career options you are satisfied with, what
makes you think MORE school (ie: grad school) will?
Jobs that a Ph.D. "qualify" you for have declined for decades,
especially rapidly since 2003 (of course, since I graduated in 2006).
The recent #TaxScamBill only makes things much worse.
Of course with 20 years of budget cuts, academics/professors (like just
about any human group I suppose) often behave like rats/crabs in a box
(when one almost rises out of the box, they pull them back in). Lots of
nepotism and corruption in academia and overall race to the bottom.
I don't think you'll find career satisfaction after pursuing grad
school, at least until there are massive changes in academia (and to
some degree funding, though money won't immediately or completely solve
the cultural/systematic problems in the ivory tower).
Also, if you're looking for mentorship, grad school is probably not the
best place to go - again at least not in the current environment.
In my experience, after college (for some even right out of high school)
you get much better education, experience and career success just
jumping right in and pursuing what it is you want to do (in the broad
sense, of course specific jobs might have some sort of specific short
sighted degree requirement). I think science types should seriously
consider starting a business or some form of independent career out of
college or high school. (this is also consistent with those of a number
of colleagues, as well as my general observations of the world and my
profession).
Decide what you want to do (broadly), determine what you need to learn
to do it (skills, etc.), quickly find the resources and do it. Some of
the most famous success stories are college drop-outs. Their key was
knowing "when to hold'em and when to fold'em, and when to walk away and
RUN). eg: they knew when they got what they needed out of school, or
at least when the time was right in their life, to jump into their
career. They saw the opportunity before them and didn't "hold out for a
degree". (had they finished college they probably would have totally
missed their big opportunities).
Good luck!
On 6/30/2018 1:23 AM, Zoe Lieb wrote:
Yes me too! I would love to know how people recently out of school or
otherwise are sculpting their careers. I graduated from undergraduate
in 2013 and have had a few really wonderful paid work experiences
doing data collection, but always seasonal and usually not a way to
move up at it. Then for the last year and a half I have worked for a
wonderful NGO (Mongolian Bankhar Dog Project) - an amazing experience.
I started off working for them for a small stipend and covering my
expenses, and eventually I asked for a full salary and got it. But
still, they cannot afford me long-term and because of our small size,
I don't have as much mentorship as I might have at a larger program.
So I am moving on to graduate school with the plan that more education
plus my experience will lead me to work where I can really apply my
skills, make amazing conservation programs, and... oh yeah! Get paid
well and for the longterm!
I don't count myself a 'success story' yet, and as next steps get
closer, some examples of people making it work for them would be
really helpful to me.
Good luck everyone out there looking for work or continuing school.
On Sat, Jun 30, 2018 at 11:57 AM, Adam Schultz
<adam.t.schu...@wolves.northern.edu
<mailto:adam.t.schu...@wolves.northern.edu>> wrote:
Please reply all with any responses! I graduate soon and plan to
work other technician jobs past what I already have to find what
route my graduate studies should take. Success stories, or just
stories in general, would be amazing.
On Fri, Jun 29, 2018, 11:53 PM Meghan Bohn <mboh...@hotmail.com
<mailto:mboh...@hotmail.com>> wrote:
As an older recent graduate looking to transition from animal
keeping to something more conservation/education focused, I'd
like to see some success stories as well. 😊
Meghan
Meghan Bohn
Animal Keeper, Peoria Zoo
------------------------------------------------------------------------
*From:* Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news
<ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU <mailto:ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU>>
on behalf of Jason Hernandez <jason.hernande...@yahoo.com
<mailto:jason.hernande...@yahoo.com>>
*Sent:* Friday, June 29, 2018 11:32 PM
*To:* ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU <mailto:ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU>
*Subject:* [ECOLOG-L] Those rare success stories...
Now that the academic year has ended, the big wave of seasonal
field jobs has abated, as have the inevitable posts by
graduating students hoping to find one. And I have to admit, I
have gotten a little jaded. I put myself in the shoes of one
of those young people...
...Tropical rainforests have had a lot of exposure for many
years now, it is no surprise when a young person is inspired
to pursue a career in conservation, with hopes of making a
difference in the tropics. But as you search for
opportunities, what do you find? Every opportunity in a
tropical environment is a volunteer position or an unpaid
internship. Some cover your expenses; some expect you to cover
your own airfare; some even charge you a fee. But, you
rationalize, it's an investment in your future; you will gain
a new skill set and valuable experience for your resume, make
contacts in the conservation world for your network.. So you
take the unpaid job. You have a wonderful experience, you
learn a lot. But then you begin to notice that every season,
it is the same. Every position in the tropics is unpaid. If
you were an organization with limited resources, why would you
pay someone when there is a steady stream of idealistic young
people eager to work for free? As the young person, how many
of these unpaid jobs can you afford before you have to give up
and go mitigate wetlands for a strip mall developer, or count
dead bats on a wind farm?
It can't possibly be that way for everyone. I am interested in
the stories of young people who succeeded in pursuing this
dream sustainably. How did you make it happen?
Jason Hernandez
ATD of ATB and ISI
--
Aaron T. Dossey, Ph.D.
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
http://cricketpowder.com/curriculum-vitae/
NEW BOOK OUT!: Insects as Sustainable Food Ingredients
https://cricketpowder.com/insects-as-sustainable-food-ingredients/
Founder/Owner: All Things Bugs LLC
Capitalizing on Low-Crawling Fruit from Insect-Based Innovation
ABOUT: http://cricketpowder.com/about-us/
LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/pub/all-things-bugs-dr-aaron-t-dossey/53/775/104
FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/Allthingsbugs
ISI: https://www.facebook.com/InvertebrateStudiesInstitute
PHONE: 1-352-281-3643
SEO: Entomophagy, Protein, Sustainable, Sustainability, Nutrition, Wellness,
Agriculture, Cricket Powder, Griopro, Cricket Flour, Innovation, Science,
Entomology, Mealworm, Waxworm, Climate Change, funding, grants, text book,
reference book, curricula, curriculum, education, science, innovation,
technology, Environment, nature, invertebrates, research, entrepreneur .
