Lost Postdocs 💔

Lately, at a conference, a PhD student told us that as a kid she often went for walks with her dad and they sometimes passed a nearby research institute. She then climbed on her dad’s shoulders, trying to peek through the windows 🪟. There was not much to see. Men and women robed in white gowns appeared and disappeared 👩🏿‍🔬🧑‍🔬, wandering around, following an invisible plan.

“These are scientists” her dad explained to her. Scientists investigate nature 🌱. They find out why the sky is blue 🌈 and flowers smell sweet 🌸. Something touched that little girl deep inside. From that day on she knew, one day she would become a scientist, too.

Years passed by, and the little girl grew into a young lady who never lost her focus. One day, the time had come, and she enrolled for her PhD programme. Experiments, lectures, protocols, talks and conferences filled her busy days. She learned the scientific mindset, how to ask questions, how to design and execute a study, and how to communicate the results to her peers and friends.

“Are you going to stay in research, after finishing the PhD?” 👀

“No way ❌”, is her firm answer.

What happened?

Postdocs leave research and academia for industry and other fields. When we ask them, the answers are always the same.

You only get short-term contracts that do not allow any sort of planning. Even worse, there is the pressure to publish more and more, with ever-increasing impact points. This forces you to move away from your scientific curiosity and passion.

The passion to investigate the ultimate mysteries of nature 🌱.

The passion that was once ignited in that little girl sitting on her dad’s shoulders – peeking through the windows of a laboratory 🔬.

The passion that had accompanied her for so many years.

Is now gone … forever.😔

If we want a #science to be part of our future generations, things need to change.

Let’s start today 🚀🚀🚀!!

Author: asban

#phd #postdoc #futuregeneration

#research #passion #mint #stem #lifescience #scientists #academia #mindset #rolemodel