I started my PhD in 2014 in the group "Experimental Psychiatry" with Prof. Christine Winter. My focus revolved around neuropsychiatric disorders and my daily work contained a mix of performing stereotactic surgeries, behavioral experiments and electrophysiological recordings. My thesis is written and ready to go, the plan is to open the procedure this summer.
However, a lot has happened since I finished lab work in 2017. I moved back to Denmark, mainly with the purpose of getting closer to my family (I am a dane) and finding a job. Luckily, all of this fell into place rather quickly.
 |
| Henriette Edemann Callesen |
I started looking for jobs a few months before moving back to Denmark. I spent a lot of time figuring out what kind of job I wanted, which wasn’t easy. Moving from research into the “real world" seemed rather daunting. I mainly saw myself as a researcher and was interested in continuing in this field. Yet, after almost three years of working with rats, I wanted to get out of the lab. I did quite a lot of soul searching to figure out what kind of position met my requirements and to understand what qualifications the PhD had given me. In this period, I even wrote an article in the CNS newsletter about this topic – simply because I had to put my own doubts into words and let go of the imposter syndrome.
Let go of the imposter syndrome
I eventually boiled all my qualifications down to a proper CV that included my PhD, but also some organizational work I had been doing on the side. I made sure that the focus was not on my published papers nor my everyday handling with rats, since this is only relevant if you want to stay in academia. Back in Denmark, I sent out a bunch of applications. To make the story short: I am now an Academic Employee at the Danish Health Authorities in Copenhagen.
My Work Has Clinical Impact
My daily work evolves around constructing National Clinical Guidelines. I attend meetings with clinicians to figure out where the problems in their daily work are. For example, we discuss whether there is lack of evidence for the treatments that are being applied, or if one treatment is better than another. Then I go through research publications, critically evaluating its quality (using the so-called GRADE method [1]) in order to find out more about the effects of different treatment options. All of this is then composed into a National Clinical Guideline, which physicians can use in their daily work when doubt arises.
Use your qualifications wisely
And, boy, is this work different from being in the lab! I no longer work with rats, I have normal working hours and I get to drink coffee at my desk, while going through research. I developed competencies in understanding what contains good research (and what not) and I get insight into the challenges doctors face daily. Moreover, my products have clinical impact, which is very motivating.
What I miss, though, is being able to sit down and scientifically analyze and interpret data. I miss the flexibility that comes with being a PhD student, including structuring the day myself. I miss my friends and colleagues in Berlin and the thrill of being abroad. With that said, right now, I would not change it for the world. My new position offers other interesting possibilities and I get to grow in a different direction then what I would have if I had stayed in academia.
So, to all of you currently in academia who are thinking about changing tracks: first of all, yes, your PhD is a valuable asset that can land you a job in the “real world”. However, be aware that when promoting yourself, employers outside academia value other aspects of your work than a potential PI. There are indeed jobs out there, where you can combine research and regular working hours. Seriously, let go of the imposter syndrome that many PhD students have. Use your qualifications wisely, take a leap and go for it.
by Henriette Edemann Callesen, MSc and PhD Alumna, MedNeuro
[1] http://bit.ly/1IQ69Ub
This article originally appeared March 2018, in Beauty and the Brain , Vol 11 - Issue 01
No comments:
Post a Comment