In our lab meeting today we talked about the transition from a PhD to a postdoc position. I’m sharing some of the advice from the lab and reflections here.
Thanks to Seascapes and CAT labs for sharing their thoughts.
This can be a hard transition to make. At the end of your PhD you should have a good level of confidence about your topic. But then a postdoc position will often be on a different research problem, use different methods or be working with a different network of scientists and stakeholders.
Metacognition is self-awareness of your thought processes. For research its particularly key to be self-aware of how you learn.
Understanding how to learn means you can quickly and more smoothly immerse yourself in a new research topic.
For PhD supervisors you can point out or ask questions to help students understand their own thought and learning processes. For example, one metacognition trick is to use analogy to solve a new problem.
Another skill is understanding how you learn (is it by reading, by talking to people, by doing? ). This can help you come to grips with a new topic if you know how to research it and what is the best way that works for you.
Exposing yourself to a broad range of different types of research (for me this meant attending the biology department seminar which ranged from fisheries topics I was interested in to neuroscience which could still be interesting though not directly relevant to my studies then).
These skills are just broadly useful in many careers and easy to translate.
Its one reason we practice facilitation of meetings in our lab meetings.
Things to think about in your PhD (or for supervisors) are to get a broad view on different ways of presenting information. Sometimes our PhDs are too focused on academic publications and presentations.
Read, and look for opportunities to write in other formats such as blogs, media releases, reports and policy briefs.
For presentations, take comms training (if its available), do media interviews if you get the chance. Participating in 3 Minute Thesis (3MT) is another great way to learn presentation skills that are highly transferable.
Lots of people will give you advice or directions. Some of it is good, some not so good. Understanding of reporting structures in your organisation is important so you can understand your role and what the organisation wants you to achieve.
In your postdoc you may have less autonomy in some ways than you had in your PhD. Often postdocs are funded to deliver a certain project outcome (e.g. for industry partner or government).
This will mean you need to better differentiate between helpful advisors and project leaders that you need to deliver too.
As you progress in your career its also important to learn more about institutional structures. For instance, your supervisor might report to a head of school who reports to a dean who reports to a pro-vice chancellor. You probably didn’t pay too much attention to this stuff in your PhD.
It becomes increasingly important to understand as you move up in your career.
Find out how to get help and don’t be afraid to ask. Your new colleagues are usually happy to help.
It could be small things like how to navigate the financial reimbursement system. This can save you a lot of time.
Most universities and large institutions will also provide access to counselling and mental health care services, so take make the most of those if you are finding the new job or move stressful.
Don’t underestimate the time it takes to learn a new topic. So give yourself (and talk to your supervisor about having) time to learn the new topic.
And the final tip from the team was to read old papers, from 10, 20, 30 years ago or more. When you are approaching a new topic these papers give you essential background and are often simpler to understand. Its also helpful to understand the historical context of a new research field.
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