Wednesday 30 May 2012

Uncertainty.

[from here]
There's a fair bit of it in my life right now. Like I mentioned previously, I really have no idea what will be happening after I finish my thesis. Academia is pretty competitive, and I need the experiments that I'm finishing up to have exciting publishable results that will make my CV look impressive so people will consider hiring me. However I have no idea what the results are yet (hopefully in a few weeks...), or exactly when I'll be finishing my thesis (but really hoping it's before my scholarship runs out). Another thing I'm hoping is to get into a short (one week) course I applied for in Wales. It's on neuroanatomy and if I get accepted they'll fly me over there and my accommodation is sorted too!! I'm supposed to find out by the end of May, so of course I've been checking my email every five minutes in case they've decided. If I get into the course, I might also take the opportunity to visit a few researchers in the UK and try to politely convince them to hire me. I still would really (really really) like to work in the UK obviously, however I have no idea how realistic that goal is either.

I've known since I was around 15 that I wanted to study psychology at university, and even knew which uni I wanted to go to. So it happened. When doing psychology I decided I really wanted to get into honours, so I did. This PhD opportunity pretty much fell in my lap too, so I've been pretty used to doing what I wanted and not having to wait long to get it. That is why this whole having-no-idea-what's-next thing is pretty unsettling. Perhaps being at uni for so long has just pushed back my 'quarter life crisis' a couple of years. 

Having said that though, I've received a lot of encouragement the last couple of days, which I've really appreciated. I had a great meeting with my supervisor Monday, where we made a very specific plan of deadlines for writing my thesis chapters. Since then I've been motivated and productive (and it's not even Productive June yet!) - I've completed two more papers that should be submitted to journals shortly, finished marking reports, and worked on my thesis a fair bit. I also had a meeting with another academic involved in my project and he made it clear he thought my thesis would be well-written, and he said he'd speak to some contacts he has in the UK about possible work. Most of all, Husband has been super encouraging. He doesn't seem at all concerned that things won't work out, and it's helped me not to crawl into a ball overwhelmed by all the things I need to do, but rather get to work and make sure I do my best. Because of that, I've actually felt much more positive than I have in a long time - unfortunately that doesn't change how busy I am!

[via]

7 comments:

  1. Good luck with the course in Wales: keep us posted! That sounds like a great opportunity for you. I so need a productive June, but the end of May hasn't been so stellar for me. Lab work is failing and I'm losing interest! HELP! I should probably work on some papers: those always pick me up! (I'm a nerd, I know, but you can relate!).

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    1. I'm not sure what I can suggest to help, except look at my not-so-motivating Productive June posters from last year? Hehehe.

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  2. Despite the "Uncertainty" title, it sounds like you're really figuring things out!! Nice work!

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    1. haha well I'm glad it appears that way (even if that may not 100% be the case) :P

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  3. Even though you're 'uncertain' there's a lot in your post that is very certain and very positive. Even though I'm doing a PhD as well, it's a little different as you're in the Sciences. My background is Psychology as well, but I went down the road of Social Psychology, with a greater interest in research. I think mixing it up helps - chapter writing, article writing, blog writing ;), traveling, I think all those different things help keep you sane and positive, but I agree, above all, they keep you BUSY! I'm here if you ever need to vent or just talk :) xoxox

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    1. Thanks Vanisha, I really appreciate it! It's good to know there's people going through similar things - may have to take you up on that vent/chat at some point :)

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  4. Some grad students also face the same problem when they graduate. Some think that they can’t find a good job and they would be stuck on a mediocre one. But, I think with degree like Master and PhD can really be a big help for job seeker. Anyway, what happened to your thesis? I think having a thesis help can really make a difference as it can help point out mistake. 

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Hooray! Thanks for commenting :)

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