Today, I fulfilled my last doctoral course requirement by presenting my dissertation work for an hour in Epid 890. It was amusing, and I had far too many slides, but I have a while to edit them and figure out what I need to say.
I have 22 days and 10 hours until I present my dissertation work for real. The countdown is beginning.
Thursday, January 31, 2013
Thursday, January 24, 2013
The time to hesitate is through / No time to wallow in the mire
"The time to hesitate is through."
I have 29 days until I defend my dissertation. Which means, I have about 10 days to finish writing it and get the finished copy to my adviser for edits before I submit it to my committee. It's currently 38,000 words and 148 pages, but that should increase quite a bit before I'm done.
It's going to be a whirlwind next few weeks with a lot of big and important events. It's going to go like this, except imagine that you're the MicroMachines man saying all of this:
More on all of this soon! Right now, TO THE DISSERTAT-MOBILE!
p.s. This is how I'll feel on Feb 22 after I defend... Like ALL of these people combined.
I have 29 days until I defend my dissertation. Which means, I have about 10 days to finish writing it and get the finished copy to my adviser for edits before I submit it to my committee. It's currently 38,000 words and 148 pages, but that should increase quite a bit before I'm done.
It's going to be a whirlwind next few weeks with a lot of big and important events. It's going to go like this, except imagine that you're the MicroMachines man saying all of this:
Present work to peers next week, finish writing dissertation, edit dissertation, hand to committee, create dissertation Powerpoint, give mock dissertation presentation in lab, run to Washington for a weekend to meet with new employer, find a place to live, come back to Michigan, perfect dissertation presentation, parents arrive, defend dissertation, throw goodbye party, paint bathroom and hallway, parents leave, pack up house, do edits to dissertation, submit to Rackham, finish packing up house, drive across the country, start work.
More on all of this soon! Right now, TO THE DISSERTAT-MOBILE!
p.s. This is how I'll feel on Feb 22 after I defend... Like ALL of these people combined.
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
Stress me out
Forbes has a list of the least stressful jobs of 2013 (find it here). On the top of the list is university professor. This is absolutely laughable. I'm not sure if they've met any of the science faculty around any major research institution, but that's about the most stressful job I can imagine. Meeting and working with faculty members here at Michigan's School of Public Health has convinced me to stay as far away from academia as possible.
For example, many professors I've studied under are awake all the time. Awake AND working. Yes, ALL the time. For instance, an assistant professor I worked with last year has 2 kids and a nanny because she and her husband are both science professors and don't actually have time to spend with their children.
Not only are these people teaching courses to a bunch of whiny grad students, but they HAVE to get grants funded. Most professors here have it in their contract that 40-60% of their salaries will be paid by their own grants.
Do you know how hard it is to get a grant these days? Well, let me give you a little story about that.... I helped work on a grant last year. It was awesome. Just a beautiful grant. It was in the top 1% of grants during that submission. It did NOT get funded. Nope.
There is so much competition being a research professor anywhere because of the competition for funding that people work 20 hrs a day and neglect their own families. How is that the least stressful job of 2013?
For example, many professors I've studied under are awake all the time. Awake AND working. Yes, ALL the time. For instance, an assistant professor I worked with last year has 2 kids and a nanny because she and her husband are both science professors and don't actually have time to spend with their children.
Not only are these people teaching courses to a bunch of whiny grad students, but they HAVE to get grants funded. Most professors here have it in their contract that 40-60% of their salaries will be paid by their own grants.
Do you know how hard it is to get a grant these days? Well, let me give you a little story about that.... I helped work on a grant last year. It was awesome. Just a beautiful grant. It was in the top 1% of grants during that submission. It did NOT get funded. Nope.
There is so much competition being a research professor anywhere because of the competition for funding that people work 20 hrs a day and neglect their own families. How is that the least stressful job of 2013?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)