Sure, the nature of academia is pretty competitive and ruthless. Research Councils don’t just give out their money to anyone and universities are constantly pressured to perform to a prescribed set of metrics on dozens of different league tables, but hey, it’s really not all bad. You’re not convinced, huh? Ok, so here are some of the really cool things about being an academic. I’ve listed 10 (in no particular order), but see if there’s more you can think of:
1. We get to choose an area of research we actually want to study.
It’s not often that a worker in the public (or even private) sector has the flexibility to choose what issue or topic they will dedicate their working life to. School teachers are given a set curriculum (which, let’s face it, is dire at the best of times); GPs don’t get to choose which patients will visit them in any given day; even Politicians cannot independently determine how to run a country, without working within other parameters (although some choose to anyway). How cool is it that you can choose a research topic which you are genuinely interested in, and get to learn all about it?!
2. Autonomy
Academia is largely an autonomous working environment for academic staff. Yes, there will be pre-determined meetings (any university issue appears to have a committee attached to it…), teaching hours and student tutorials, but beyond that there typically a decent amount of autonomy. Working hours and contexts are less prescriptive, professional development training can be more selective and specific to you…etc. Autonomy is a good thing….no…a very good thing.
3. Funding for training and events
Pretty self-explanatory, but we get funded for attending events which help us develop either in respect of research-specific stuff, or more generic professional development. That’s pretty important; not every job has those opportunities or importantly, will fund us to simply develop.
4. Challenges, challenges, challenges
So some of us are better at dealing with challenges than others; we know that. But if we’re not being challenged, then how are we meant to grow? When something is challenging, that means we’re learning; either learning a particular topic or learning the skills to overcome it. Working or living in a world with no challenges would be a very dull existence. By embracing challenges, we’re embracing life.
5. Everyone knows everyone
So some people wouldn’t necessarily see this as a positive thing, but it’s sort of reassuring that no matter where you are (e.g., a conference, workshop) you can guarantee there will be someone there who you either know directly, or someone who you share a mutual acquaintance with. That familiarity is sort of comforting.
6. You never stop learning
Similar to #4 but specifically that there is always an opportunity to learn new things or skills. We can learn from so many different sources; books, articles, colleagues, collaborators, and even students. Yes, one of the most rewarding parts of my job is when a student has reached a level when they have ownership on their learning and they can help me learn something, or help me see something from a different perspective. How amazing to be in a world where that’s part of the day job?!
7. Presenting and inspiring others
After all that time in the office and the lab, we actually get lots of opportunities to present our ideas and work to other people. There are tonnes of conferences, symposia, and events we can choose from to share our insights. Not everyone gets the opportunity to share what they’ve learnt at work in such a formalised way. When we teach, we also have the opportunity to inspire a new generation of individuals, some of whom may choose academic careers themselves. One thing I love about my job is seeing light-bulbs switching on in my students and recognising that I’ve played a role in their learning journeys. Our job isn’t about filling buckets, but lighting fires. Not every student recognises that (or every academic for that matter), but even if the smallest of sparks is evident, I’ve done my job. And that’s just awesome!
8. Working with others
We don’t get to all the time, but a lot of our work often requires and certainly can be supported by working with others. Our networks are fundamental to both the way we work in an operationalised way (e.g., team teaching, collaborative projects), but also in how thinking can be contextualised and reconceptualised from having multiple perspectives. Not every job can permit that opportunity, and we can use the support of others in so many different ways, even if it for a source of social or emotional support.
9. Get paid to read what we love
Part of our work involves being up-to-date with the literature, right? The literature in an area which we have specifically and selectively picked ourselves, which we get paid to read! Where else in the world is that ever an option?! (If the job title of “Professional Book Reader” exists, then ok…fair enough)
10. In psychology, we can see it all around us
Ok, so a psychology-specific one; psychology is everywhere, in some form or other. No matter what the domain, we can consider what we are learning in a meaningful context which means our work actually means something in the real world. Ok, so researching life-saving drugs is perhaps more useful in the grand scheme of things, but hey, humans are amazing creatures and our work is helping realise how amazing we really are! What is more awesome than that……..?!
Comments