My First 2 Months on the Other Side: Postdoc Life

#1 It still feels weird to be called Dr and to be a member of staff

Full disclosure, I have been using the Dr title at every opportunity and will continue to do so! It is excellent to see your new name on post! However, it still doesn’t feel real and seeing myself as a staff member has taken some getting used to. Postdocs sit in a grey area where you're not a student anymore but you also don’t have a permanent contract, like lecturers, so it can be hard to know where you fit. Seeing myself as an independent researcher, rather than a staff member, has helped with this transition. This is also exactly what the PhD trains you to be!

#2 You know more than you think (hello Imposter Syndrome)

I have written previously about tackling Imposter Syndrome during your PhD and I honestly thought I had it nailed. It turns out that moving to a new place, with a new team and working on a new project are the exact triggers for Imposter Syndrome to pop back up again. Over the past two months I have doubted myself and my ability to live up to the expectations of a postdoc, despite my supervisor reminding me that I’ve been given this role for a reason. Sadly, nothing can beat Imposter Syndrome apart from evidence that you can do the job — and this takes time. So, stick with it, focus on what you do know and remind yourself of all that you have achieved in the past four years to get to where you are today. I know this feeling will go away but I also know that it takes time. Be kind to yourself.

#3 You might feel like you’ve gone backwards

At the end of my PhD I had spent four years learning about a very specific topic (sensory perception of whey protein), so I knew the key papers and methods in this area. Starting afresh on a new research topic has been challenging. I don't know the key work, the most common methods or any of the abbreviations. Academia loves an abbreviation, IYKYK am I right? Whilst you might feel like you’ve gone backwards in technical knowledge, you bring with you all the scientific skills from your PhD. I may not know the literature in this area but I know how to conduct a systematic review using different search engines to educate myself! You haven’t gone backwards, just taken a sidestep which can take time to adjust to. Essentially, dw about it (sorry, acronyms over!).

#4 The pace of research has changed

During your PhD you’re a lone wolf. As a postdoc you become part of a whole new wolf pack. You’re often working on a larger research project with a team of professors, lecturers, postdocs, PhD students and MSc or undergraduate students. This changes the nature of the work you will be asked to do. During the past few months, I have been doing all sorts of projects including setting up team communication channels, developing project branding and outreach platforms and establishing my individual research plan. It is a great experience being part of a larger research team so embrace these opportunities to expand your skillset, even if they aren’t in your usual way of working.

Your pace will also change as you’re now working an actual job. You should work in a way that is sustainable for your long-term career, not the four-year madness that is a PhD. Think closing your laptop at 5pm, not checking emails outside working hours and booking annual leave to look forward to. These may sound like luxuries during your PhD (although I would argue they’re also important then) but they are essential for a long career without burnout.

#5 You have a new sense of freedom and independence

My main feeling from the first two months of my postdoc is: happy! I feel really good to be working on a new project in a team where I feel valued and my ideas are listened to. I have more freedom to schedule my own time, my research priorities and to action plans that have been made. I feel like an independent researcher now and that’s reality exciting! Plus, it’s a nice bonus to know that the most you ever have to write again is a scientific paper and not a 100,000-word thesis! Sorry, not sorry!

Being a postdoc is great and I feel so privileged to be able to call doing research a job. I love going to work and am really excited about this next chapter. So if you are in the depths of thesis writing, keep going! There is a (very fun!) light at the end of the tunnel where you still get to go to the lab, but with a smile on your face and a pension in your pocket.

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