# Presentation: 358201

## Career Options

- Gordon Emslie
- Oklahoma State University

## Outline

*Career* Path Options
- Company
- University
-  Getting Hired
-  Making Progress – Role of Research
-  Tenure – Concept and Reality
- Government
- General Discussion

## Graduate Student

## Graduate Student

- Company

## Graduate Student

- Company

- Faculty Member

## Graduate Student

- Company

- Faculty Member

- Postdoc

## Graduate Student

- Government Laboratory

- Company

- Faculty Member

- Postdoc

## Graduate Student

- Government Laboratory

- Company

- Faculty Member

- Postdoc

## Graduate Student

- Government Laboratory

- Company

- Faculty Member

- Administration

- Postdoc

## Graduate Student

- Government Laboratory

- Company

- Faculty Member

- Administration

- Retire

- Postdoc

## Graduate Student

- Government Laboratory

- Company

- Faculty Member

- Administration

- Retire

- Postdoc

## Graduate Student

- Government Laboratory

- Company

- Faculty Member

- Administration

- Retire

- Play Golf

- Postdoc

## Graduate Student

- Postdoc

- Government Laboratory

- Company

- Faculty Member

- Administration

- Retire

- Play Golf

## “Post-Doc”

- Also known as
- Research associate
- NRC Fellow
- Postdoctoral Fellow
- Midway between *being* a student and *working with* students
- Not common in other fields (engineering, humanities), but
- Golden opportunity to _*identify yourself*_

## 

Career Contrast
Company/University/Government

**Career Contrast**
**Company/University/Government**

## Company

- Can hire “spontaneously” in response to applicant availability
- Generally pays quite well!
- BUT
***No tenure***!
- Often doing “other people’s work”
- Job generally split between centrally and externally funded tasks

## University

- Typically hire in response to department/university needs
- Teaching
- Growth
- Research initiatives
- Opportunities not necessarily well-timed to your availability

## Universities (US)

- Research I
- Research II
- 4-Year
- Community College
- 9-month vs. 12-month; summer salary
- Tenure!

## University Positions

- Research Scientist (affiliated with Research Center)
- Research Faculty
- Tenure-track faculty (“professor”)
- Administration (solving other people’s problems)

## Steps to Getting Hired at a University

- Graduate (no ABD!!)
- Post-doc
- Attend (and be noticed at) meetings
- Visit institutions in advance (e.g., seminars)
- Talk to colleagues; let them know you are/will be available
- Try for institutions in the “family”; use advisor’s connections
- Review announcements (*Physics Today*, SolarNews, *Chronicle of Higher Education*, other)
- Secure reference commitments
- Prepare “teaching philosophy” and “research goals”
- Write thoughtful, *institution specific*, cover letter (2-3 pages is fine)

## The Interview

***They*** are in charge!
- Seminar – substance and pedagogy
- Conversations with future colleagues
- Interviews with students
- Interviews with administrators
- The Department Head

## Finalizing the Hire

***You*** are in charge!!
- Salary
- Research Support (students, facilities,...)
- Colleagues
- Startup Package
- Understand the periodic review process
- Graduated Teaching Load?
- Define expectations clearly

## Starting Out as a Faculty Member

- Teaching (preparation!)
- Graduate student supervision
- Seek mentoring by senior faculty
- Research
- papers
- proposals (PI or CoI?)
- Accept offers from journal editors, agency directors
- Gauge service role (science, university, public)
- Time management
- Stress management

## Tenure

- Academic Freedom!
- 6-year clock – “eigenstate forcing”
- Preparation
- Keep comprehensive file updated
- Maintain “uniform” productivity
- Life after tenure

## University Administration

- Department Committees
- Graduate Coordinator
- Department Chair/Head
- Dean (College, Graduate)
- Center Director
- Vice President for Research
- Provost
- President
- Chancellor

## Government Laboratory

- NASA (GSFC, MSFC, ....)
- NRL
- NOAO
- NOAA
- Typically more “project-driven” than university

## Government Laboratory (GS)

- Hiring by announcement
- No salary negotiation!
- 1-2 year “probation period” –  almost instant tenure!
- May have to perform other tasks related to lab operations:
- Proposal administration
- Mission management
- New – Full-Cost Accounting!

## The Interview

***They*** are in charge!
- Seminar – substance, relation to mission of group
- Your long-range research plans
- Conversations with future colleagues
- Interviews with administrators
- The Branch Head

## Finalizing the Hire

***You*** are in charge!!
- Salary
- Research Support (students, facilities,...)
- Startup Package
- Understand the periodic review process
- Graduated Teaching Load?
- Define expectations clearly

## Finalizing the Hire

***You*** are in charge!!
- Salary
- Research Support (students, facilities,...)
- Startup Package
- Understand the periodic review process
- Graduated Teaching Load?
- Define expectations clearly

## Finalizing the Hire

***You*** are in charge!!
- Salary
- Research Support (students, facilities,...)
- Startup Package
- Understand the periodic review process
- Graduated Teaching Load?
- Define expectations clearly

## Government Laboratory (Contractor)

- Most hires are in this category
- Company
- University affiliate
- Hired by/working for company/university
- Perform tasks related to mission objectives:
- Hardware development
- Software development
- Subcontract work
- Tasks originate/assigned by Government civil servant
_**→**__**Interesting employer/employee relationship!**_

## Government Laboratory Administration

- Branch Head
- Laboratory Chief (SES)
- Science Director
- Set goals and direction for laboratory
- Still solving other people’s problems

## Other Roles in the Community

- Government Agency
- permanent
- “rotator”
- Observatory Director
- Education & Outreach
- Societies & Divisions
- Committee member
- Officer
- Executive Director

## Serving Many Masters

- Your institution
- Teaching
- Helping institution realize its goals
- Supervision of Graduate Students and Postdocs
- Your community
- Paper review
- Proposal review
- Hosting meetings
- Forming collaborations
- Mission development
- Service on Advisory Committees (MOWG, Universe Working Group, Roadmap, Decadal Review,...)
***Yourself***

## Role of Research

- Varies by career type
- In some fields, not always gauged by funding rate, but...
- In Solar Physics, it is!
- University
- Summer salary
- Tenure (and post-tenure support for others)
- Government – job *assignment*
- Company – job *security*

## Funding Research

- With full-cost accounting, now necessary in virtually all career options
- Required $$
- ~2  gross salary
- ~1.5  other
- Travel
- Publication
- Equipment
- Subcontracts
- Supplies, materials
- Requires steady diet of grant-writing activity!

- AGE – a timeline/case study

## Graduate Student

- Postdoc

- Government Laboratory

- Company

- Faculty Member

- Administration

- Retire

- Play Golf

**Glasgow, Harvard**

**1976-79**

## Graduate Student

- Postdoc

- Government Laboratory

- Company

- Faculty Member

- Administration

- Retire

- Play Golf

**1979**

**Stanford**

## Graduate Student

- Postdoc

- Government Laboratory

- Company

- Faculty Member

- Administration

- Retire

- Play Golf

**1981**

**UAH**

## Graduate Student

- Postdoc

- Government Laboratory

- Company

- Faculty Member

- Administration

- Retire

- Play Golf

**1991**

**UAH**

## Graduate Student

- Postdoc

- Government Laboratory

- Company

- Faculty Member

- Administration

- Retire

- Play Golf

**2004**

**UAH**

## Graduate Student

- Postdoc

- Government Laboratory

- Company

- Faculty Member

- Administration

- Retire

- Play Golf

**2004**

**OSU**

## ????

- Postdoc

- Government Laboratory

- Company

- Faculty Member

- Administration

- Retire

- Play Golf

**????**

## ????

- Postdoc

- Government Laboratory

- Company

- Faculty Member

- Administration

- Retire

- Play Golf

**????**

## Points to Remember

- Your professional goals are largely self-motivated
- However,....
- Paid employment usually entails service beyond your personal and professional goals
- Weighing these “extra” obligations is paramount in deciding on a career path
- “It’s a wonderful life”