Sometimes I see people on LinkedIn change their profession from
Post-doc to Research Associate. That always makes me laugh a little and until
recently led me to think that those people had been a post-doc for too long,
and therefore just gave it a different name. But that is not true, as I have
recently discovered that Research Associate is actually a thing. Because yours
truly is becoming one, which not only allows me to change my profession on
LinkedIn, but also allows me to receive a substantial increase in pay (which
then causes me to lose the daycare fellowship that we have, so not much of a
net increase, but still).
The reason I am becoming a Research Associate is because only then
can I be a co-investigator (is that the correct term?) on my PIs next R01
renewal, for which I have a lot of ideas and preliminary data. I have also been
involved in setting up a successful collaboration that has led to these
preliminary data. The deal will be that if we get the grant and I leave, I will
be able to take my chunk of this money (which is nice, because since I’m not a
citizen I am not allowed to apply for a lot of US funding).
So this is all really nice, but of course in the end I’m still a
post-doc; doing experiments, panicking about writing papers and trying to find
free cookies (that’s a pretty accurate job description, right?).
I'm still trying to find free cookies.
ReplyDeleteDude. Aim for free pizza.
DeleteCongratulations! I'm finding myself both very grateful I never went through the post-doc process (I highly recommend being shunted directly to PI), and also to be leaving the granted world behind as I move on to a hard-money position where I get to solve real-world problems and publish about them, rather than competing for grant money to do what I do.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the 'promotion' and best of luck with getting the grant!
ReplyDeletew00t!
Congrats, that's good news.
ReplyDeleteBTW, your postdoc job description sounds exactly like mine, especially the cookies.
Congratulations! that sounds like a sweet deal!
ReplyDeleteCongrats. Yeah postdoc is not quite a specific job so much as a state. Technically my title has changed as my funding source has. But I've always been a postdoc.
ReplyDelete