New considerations

Here are some recent ramblings, exploring my thoughts, from a five-year (going on six) postdoc (I apologize in advance):

It has been almost a year since I started to apply to non-academic jobs.  I got a bit frustrated in the last while with my lack of success, and I only sent off one application in the past three months.

So, I evaluated things some more, and I came to the realization that I need to keep all my applications restricted to the industry in which I have some training.  I won't be sending out any of those long-shot applications, and even though jobs only come up maybe once or twice per month in this particular niche, at least I can be confident that I have some of the things the employers might want.  Plus, it is a lot less work doing 2 applications per month than 20 - namely cover letter/resume tailoring and research of the potential company and position.  I still know that I hardly have any chance even in my field, which is still depressing.  At any rate, I submitted 3 applications so far this month, and one of them is for a professorship.  Oops.  I am not sure how that slipped in there, but the bleak market for jobs makes any job (professorship or not) in my field semi-attractive.  Or maybe not.  I think part of it is I just want to be successful and get an offer - to finally get to the end of a job process.  Do you know what I mean?  Even if that means a job in academia - maybe I can actually get an offer?

Stupid academia.

There is still the option of staying where I am at and continuing ad nauseum in a never-ending postdoc role, with the caveat that I secure the necessary funding for my position.  But the pay sucks.  What I mean to say is:  the pay sucks.  Did I say that already?  Well it does.  Is it possible to actually be a 'career postdoc', or a 'professional postdoc'?  Is that actually a career?  How long can someone stay a postdoc?  Any postdoc lifers out there?

It's not sustainable.  I still think at some point it needs to change, and I know that I need to do some sort of applying, to academic jobs or otherwise, in order to produce that change.  And so, I suppose I will continue down the application road, albeit at a much slower pace.

There is also something about just applying that I think is good.  I have applied to so many jobs in the past year that I am immune (not really) to rejection.  Therefore, the point of applying now for me is to keep hope alive; I can continue to hope that one of the applications might actually turn out.  And if I get rejected?  (Or forgotten, I should say, as most of the time I don't even get any notice).  Well, I guess I am assuming before I hit the 'submit' button that it will be rejected.

But at the same time...  is there hope still there, somewhere inside my silly self?  Hope and academia are quite similar in many ways.  They tease you.  They make you feel better than you are (at times).  They both lead you down roads that probably will not pay off in the end.

I have a new best friend... logic.  I'll try to frame my mind solely on logic.

And...?

Unfortunately, the theme of my last post remains.  I submitted only one application in the last three months.  Apparently, I had an 'in' - I already knew four or five people working there (some relatively well), I had all of the qualifications listed in the ad, and it was an industrial position for something I am trained in.  (Ok, the only thing I am formally trained in!)  I did manage to get a phone interview, and it seemed to go quite well, but I didn't make the shortlist for the on-site interviews.  It was kind of strange; I was quite confident I would at least get to the next step.

At this point, it still feels as though I am heavily under-utilized in what I am currently doing as a postdoc.  I am not sure how to explain it, but it just feels like this particular path was not meant to be, in addition to the lack of any jobs out there.  I am positive I still enjoy science - that is for sure.  But when I begin to examine myself seriously, I almost find it comical that I ended up where I am.  The things I do well and correctly are either unnoticeable by my superiors/colleagues, or they just get stolen - in the academic sense - and bastardized into another project.  I find it incredibly frustrating how minor tasks unfold so slowly, with tiny improvements (<~5%) being the only outcome.

Anyway, in terms of a different career, I am pretty sure there isn't one, and I suppose it is just a matter of accepting the cards I was dealt (if that is possible).  Remember back in high school, when the world was your oyster, and you could do anything you wanted?  Remember how difficult it was to make a decision to go down a particular path because there were so many from which to choose?  In a sense, it seems like only yesterday as I haven't accomplished much (outside the 'meaningless' academic world) during those fifteen years, but it is also incredibly distant - like some kind of fantasy world fading from my memory.

Well, another year is upon us.

Still on a break

There's nothing really to update.  80 job applications - some have been a stretch (maybe 50%), but the rest I have all the qualifications needed.  No success.

I've quit looking.  No more job ads, no more tailoring resumes and cover letters.  No more getting excited about possible jobs that might be interesting, which means no more emotional roller coaster.

If something lands in my lap, so be it, but I am apparently not cut out for academia or non-academia.  I occupy the void between two worlds, with the days passing endlessly via a mundane routine.

I was trained in science, and at one time I relished solving physical problems, but all that is tainted now.  Nothing left but a piece of ordinary paper framed in mahogany, never-ending existence in no-man's land, and the loss of my last friend... hope.

Time for a break...

Since I started formally counting, I have submitted 45 non-academic job applications.  I thought I would give everyone a breakdown of the statistics regarding number of interviews and job offers.  As I am fond of numbers, I will try to provide the technical analysis at a basic level.  I truly hope it doesn't water down the results, and I can provide the comprehensive analysis if requested.  So here it is:

Number of applications:  45
Number of in-person interviews:  0
Number of phone interviews:  0
Number of phone interviews for jobs I didn't apply for:  1*

So, I think the stats say it quite clearly, and the sample size is not too bad.  First off, I should stop applying for jobs.  Secondly,  if I stop applying for jobs (at least those I believe I am remotely qualified for), then the number of requested interviews increases dramatically.  In total, if I do nothing then I am bound to receive more interviews than if I rigorously apply.

One of the 45 jobs I applied for was a perfect match, even given my academic qualifications.  At the time of applying, I was confident I would at least be contacted for a follow-up.  There was no way that I wouldn't move to the next step.  Alas, I received the email (at least a notification, right?) that I wasn't selected.  Another job was a bit of a stretch in terms of qualifications, but I wrote a great cover letter explaining how I could do the job well, and it was in an area relevant to my work.  It seemed like the perfect transition out of academia.  I even alluded to it in a previous post as 'The perfect job'.  Well, I guess you know how that turned out.  Sure, a few of my applications were far-fetched, but the majority had strong ties to my qualifications.  I feel like I am on the black list.

No more applications for me.  What ever happened to fate?  Fate is my new best friend.  If I am supposed to have a job, then it will just all work out.  Ahh...  wishful thinking, where have you been all my life?


* Ok, an internal recruiter at one of the companies I applied for gave my application to another internal recruiter in a different branch, and I was severely under-qualified (or over-qualified, don't they mean the same thing?) for the position.  The 'interview' was a bit awkward as I tried to explain that I didn't apply for this type of position while at the same time I 'begged' to be considered anyway.  So much for pride.

Headhunters

Would you use them or not?  In the academic world, headhunters (or recruiters not based at the hiring company) are never used (to my knowledge), and most of the ads for tenure-track jobs specifically state that recruiters are not welcome.  During my non-academic search, quite a few career advice sites recommend using headhunters, and some suggest using more than one at the same time.  Unfortunately, it seems the advice to take on a recruiter often stems directly from a quasi-interview with someone employed or attached to the recruiting firm, and consequently I find their direction must be biased.  Coming from the academic world, I am leery to try out these recruiters, and I don't know if, given that everything about my leaving academia is supposed to be sort of 'hush-hush', I want my credentials (or lack thereof) to become mass-distributed such that I am labeled a hopeless, saturated case on the job market.  I guess I really don't quite understand the entire process, so I suppose I am a bit ignorant.  Anyway, as I received the 35th job rejection last week, I am starting to get concerned - I can't even get to step 1 of the selection process! (an interview, even a phone interview would be great).  What are your current thoughts about using these agencies?