I’m currently a PhD student thinking about post-PhD prospects. I want to stay on academia, but I find I have no strong opinion between being TT and being a “forever” postdoc (research associate, research professor, tomato-tomahto) other than pay and career stability. My old PI said that no one sets out to become a research associate, they’re just postdocs who stay (but I don’t respect her opinion tbh). Did anyone set out to be a “forever” post-doc deliberately, and how did you go about it? I also have a two-body problem, so flexibility is an asset for me.
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TT you’re gonna be batting for 0.1% chance. Forever postdoc.. those jobs barely exist, maybe even less than TT.
This is coming from a very lucky forever researcher non TT. The opportunity landed. I didn’t need to plan or work for it. Right place at right time. I was already thinking of escaping to the manna of industry but this position was recommended by word of mouth
But being flexible is key.
Your individual achievements matter less than your personality and ability to work with others
> pay and career stability
Pay and career stability are important and give you a lot more control over your future.
Hi,
It is a sad thing some PIs think like that. You should not be ashamed of wanting to do a Research Professor track career. You just need to be ready to work on grants while also working for others.
It’s important to distinguish between research professor and research scientist (separate roles). Research scientists are often (most often?) postdocs who stay on in semi-perpetuity. These are generally soft money positions, which are insecure in that they exclusively rely on being able to obtain external funding to pay for the position. Research professor positions are rarer than tenure track faculty positions but are usually created for specialists who fill some high priority research “hole” that is not filled by the tenure track faculty. In our field, this usually involves management of a multiuser facility/center. Some schools have research faculty that are 50% hard money (from teaching) and 50% soft money. Again these roles are field specific and institution specific but this is just a window into how it works for some.
I have a research professor position that was made possible partly by the tenured faculty I know and work well with needing someone with my skill set. So having someone influential working on my behalf with administration helped greatly in making my position possible. I had started out as research staff after getting my PhD and basically worked my position up to research professor. A lot of things had to come into place though and it was a much more favorable funding situation for my University then it currently is.
In the US most institutions do not allow hiring of postdocs past 5 years post PhD. They have to be reclassified often to Research Assistant Profs. most of these still want to be a TT professor but need more time to get there. I’m a Professor at an R1 and almost none of the RAP go past 5 years. Senior scientist positions like you see in Europe are super rare especially with the current funding crisis. I would recommend going to industry if you want to permanently do lab work.
Honestly, I know more people who want a permanent postdoc position than who want to be PI. They are rare positions in academia, and are great for people who want to stay scientists rather than become managers.
If you want to do research but not be a prof, I recommend you look outside of academia. There are good opportunities for people who want just that, often with better pay and working conditions.
Umm, if you’re giving up pay and stability to be research faculty, why not just work in industry and only give up stability?
We have one at our institution, who has turned down the TT despite pressure to stay a soft money research professor. They were and are a high performer with a serious pedigree and CV. They decided to follow the work that was most meaningful to them and prioritize their own wellbeing and their family.
They had a super abusive post doc supervisor that likely contributed to this as well. Wanting to get away from them and the system that enabled them was surely a factor.
It’s the academic equivalent to a gig job. Soft money is really stressful. Try to manage or become a director at a core facility or something.
Different field, but I’ve heard many PhD students and recent PhD graduates say: I want a research-focused job because… (that’s what I like/want/am good at). My answer is: “don’t we all!”. Their response is one of surprise, as if it’s a choice, and they’re clever enough to know what they want. The reality is of course very different and post-doc/research associate work, even if they get one of those jobs in the first place, is not a long-term career strategy.