Ep. 120: Dr. Ijeoma Kola on the Financial, Professional, and Personal Implications of Relocating a Young Family for a Postdoc
Dr. Ijeoma Kola goes solo in this episode and shares the different questions and considerations she is battling as she prepares for a postdoctoral research fellowship. Dr. Kola explains why she decided to pursue a post-doc in the first place, despite the low financial incentive. She also discusses how academia ignores the destabilizing nature of the culture of moving constantly for academic jobs, and how it jeopardizes personal goals and family responsibilities. Finally, she shares her worries about moving with a toddler to a new environment, and whether her new work environment will be one that honors the lives of professors outside of the classroom. Listen on to hear this and more!
Resources Mentioned:
Nature article about post-doc satisfaction
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Key Points From This Episode:
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Dr. Ijeoma Kola shares how she was drawn to the idea of being a professor because of the apparent flexibility of the career
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How she always thought that she would never move to “the middle of nowhere” for an academic position
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The external factors that influenced her to pursue a postdoctoral fellowship at this specific time
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The advice she received from her dissertation advisor about how long someone can remain outside of the world of academia before returning
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Dr. Kola brings up the pay comparison between a clown and a postdoctoral fellow to highlight how educators are undervalued
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The ability to negotiate a postdoctoral fellowship salary as well as a relocation fee
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How she thinks about her postdoc as an extension of her doctoral degree
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How academia doesn’t acknowledge the instability that is built into the culture of academia with regular and frequent moves often necessary before getting tenure
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What concerns Dr. Kola has about moving her son to a new country and new environment, especially in terms of diversity and inclusion
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How Dr. Kola is planning to mitigate some of her concerns and questions as she transitions into her new role
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