Postdoc hunting

Thursday, 14 January 2010 14:01

So, almost two months later, ten times busier and slightly more stressed, here I am with an update on my USA postdoc hunting trip! In two weeks I will be sitting in the plane, heading for New York, all by myself, probably wondering if I am ready enough... The first lab visit is already the day after my arrival, at the University of Yale in New Haven…now I wonder if I should have reserved some extra time in case of a huge jetlag….well, too late now. A proper scientist should perform well under any circumstances, I guess. My second lab visit is few days later at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. In between, I stay over for a weekend in New York to do some sight-seeing. It will be my first time in the Big Apple, and I already can feel that this must be the perfect place to relax a little bit, get adjusted and get prepared for my second lab visit.

Everything is planned and booked, all the hostels, all the flights…now, the only thing left is the most important part: the presentation!! I found it rather difficult to summarize everything I have done within the last three and a half years of my PhD study in only 30 slides. I must say that now that it’s finished it gives me a comforting feeling to have a comprehensive, though complete story of my PhD project. Next week I will rehearse my presentation at my current lab, just to practice a little bit. Hopefully, I will get valuable feedback and tips to improve it.

And then the only thing that’s left is to do it perfectly during my lab visits. I think being yourself is of importance in order to get a realistic view of your future lab, but also to give them the opportunity to get to know you. Luckily, this does not need a lot of preparation. I just hope I am not forgetting anything…I hope some of you who have been through a similar experience can share some valuable tips and tricks with us? For example, do you take your reference letters with you when applying for a postdoc position? Are there “do’s” and “don’t’s” in the USA labs we should be aware of? Hopefully, some of the senior postdocs will share some of these relevant information and experience with us…

Keeping my fingers crossed….