Hacking Academia
An ever-growing series of tutorials (with detailed notes) filled with practical, experience-driven tips and tricks for being effective, happy and successful in modern day academia and related careers.
Hacking Academia
Should I Stay or Should I Go? Leaving Your PhD Lab
Should I Stay or Should I Go?
No, not the song by punk rock band The Clash!
When you get your #PhD, one of the common pieces of advice you may hear is that you should move labs, cities, perhaps even countries, for your next position.
In my new #hackingacademia video, I unpack some of the rationale behind this common statement, and walk through a bunch of reasons why, and why not, to move labs and locations after getting your #PhD, ranging from personal circumstances, risk appetite, timing, livability considerations and more!
Please reshare if useful 🙏
Complete topic list and timestamps:
đź“Ś (0:00) The Rule of Thumb of Leaving Your PhD Lab
📌 (0:15) Rules Are Useful… Up to an Extent
📌 (0:32) Reminder About the “Typical” Academic Track
đź“Ś (0:56) The PhD to Postdoc Transition
đź“Ś (1:11) Starting to Unpack The Rule
📌 (1:22) Assumption: You’ve Found a Good Place to Go
📌 (1:34) Bad Reason: It’s The Done Thing
đź“Ś (2:09) Reason: Continuing Your Learning & Development
đź“Ś (3:03) Reason: Growing Your Collaborative Network
đź“Ś (3:39) Reason: Moving Can Overcome Stagnancy
đź“Ś (4:12) Moving to Leave a Toxic Lab
đź“Ś (4:22) Reason: Personal Experience Opportunities
đź“Ś (4:47) Moving Early In Your Career Can Be Easier
đź“Ś (5:18) Reasons to Consider Not Moving
đź“Ś (5:25) Reason: Major Disruption
đź“Ś (6:15) Know Your Change And Risk Aversion Level
đź“Ś (6:48) Career Runway Determines How Much Disruption
đź“Ś (7:19) Social Factors Can Be Challenging
đź“Ś (7:56) Livability Considerations
đź“Ś (8:36) Cultural and Lifestyle Fit is Important
đź“Ś (9:22) Alternative: Long Research Visits to Other Labs
📌 (10:10) Some Moves Don’t Work Out
đź“Ś (10:31) Moving Later Is Still an Option