Wicked Anomie and I have decided to refer to “olderwoman” on scatterplot as “wisewoman.” We encourage others to do so as well…
OW/WW has offered some advice to first year assistant professors – worth a read for those of you starting out or close to the market.
SIDEBAR/UPDATE: A comment on this post raised something I wanted to say… OW/WW notes that everyone hates their job the first year or two… As I note below, I’m loving life 6 months out of grad school (but also that I excel at self-delusion). It occurs to me that her point *I think* (and mine below) are really the same — the biggest part of the transition from grad student to professor (or from undergrad to grad student or immature jackass to parent, etc, etc) is about expectations and emotional management. A friend who has moved a lot once said that she doesn’t make any decisions about her happiness in a new place for a year — it takes that long to get the lay of the land, to make friends, to get a small sense of things. I tend to err on the side of cautiously optimistic…
Yes! She is definitely our resident sociological sage!
Great advice, agreed.
I was unnerved by the comment that everyone hates the first year or two of their job, so I’m glad to see that your own post, two down from this one, contradicts that.
Good for you!
Thanks, AJ, for commenting on this. I updated my post to reflect my thoughts… I can’t decide if I’m weird,lucky, deluded, or all of the above — but I really do think I landed somewhere that is a great fit, gives me the support I need, and leaves me alone to do my thing. The negative thing feels a little cultural to me too — it’s gotten a little silly, the number of people who comment on my happiness, say that I won’t be in a year, etc, etc. These are all from people who care about me (and have tenure) and it makes me nervous. But, whatever, right? At this point, I’m digging it.
Does this mean I will never leave my current position? Who knows? Does it mean I don’t have worries about my ability to get tenure? Not at all, but I do feel (again, only 6 months in) that I’m off to a good start. That’s about the best you can expect or hope for… I think the key is managing your expectations from the start.
Hey, there’s nothing wrong with liking your job! But the stress of a major relocation and all the weird new people often does freak people out, and I was trying to be supportive to people who (like me) find new experiences stressful and upsetting. I was not trying to say it is a bad sign if you don’t have this problem.
I know, WW. I think that yours is the more important point to make — for me, it’s always about getting my expectations in line with what’s to come and people do underestimate this part of it. I’m just trying to be the positive counterweight
OW/WW: your writing does tend to carry the weight of the experience your moniker (and writings) suggests that you have. Thanks for being a part of the blogging community! It’s really nice to read your insights.
That being said, I’m hoping not to hate my future job as a professor. I’ve already gone through my transition from undergrad to professional, and I “hated my job” so much that I am now switching to academia. I’m trying to take measures against falling into negativity. So far it’s working out, but I’m so early in the process it’s almost not worth mentioning.
I bring this up because I wonder what the effects of having already had a career have on becoming/being an academic. I think that “everyone hates their job for the first year or two” might apply to any job. Just a thought.