Fallacies of Academia Career

Fallacy 1: Academic is for maverick; you do not need deal with people much. Thus, you can get away with little networking skills.

What images do the words  “researcher” or “professors” invoke?

To a younger me, they associate  with “ independent”, “solo”, “creative”, or “white coat”, “ messy hair”, “eccentric”, “clumsy”, “social awkward”.  OK, my field does not involve lab work; a pen and a notebook (replaced by a laptop, or an e-notebook) suffice, so “white coat” is certainly cliche. Here is the formal description of an academic life:

 ” The doing of science is the objective part. It’s what scientists are most comfortable with. A scientist can sit in his or her lab all day long, talking to the microscopes and centrifuges, and they will never talk back. I have heard scientist friends of mine over the years rave about how much they enjoy field and lab research for exactly this reason- it is all so rational, so logical, so objective, and … alas, so nonhuman – a chance to get out in the field, away from people. No politics, no bureaucracy, no administrative duties, just pure rationality.”

As a result of these subconscious association, I had written quite a few many single-authored papers. I thought “ fragrant wines sell themselves”. Networking and promotional campaigns are for businessmen, not for ivory-tower professors. 

I now realized unfortunately both associations are dead wrong. Although we want to work for the sake of work itself,  the outside world loves to see “tangible outcomes.”  Whether the outcomes are results of lonely many hours grinding in front of a screen, or fruit of a collaboration, few people in the whole world cares. Working alone  bears fewer fruits!

Fallacy 2: Your work/achievement speaks for itself

Promotion campaigns? Yes, if you would like to be recognized. The difference from business campaigns is in the form. Academicians promote themselves by giving lectures/speeches in professional conferences or universities.  Simon Herbert, the father of computer science and artificial intelligence, Nobel Prize winner, said in his biography to the effect that he attended  lectures or activities he would not have done if he was not hoping to spread out his reputation and win a Nobel prize. Promotional campaigns in academia involve a vocal presence at professional meetings and to participate in committees and editorial boards, or graduate many PhD students throughout academic career.

An example of tragedy because of failing in the above mentioned fallacies is Ignaz Semmelweis, a Hungarian doctor in 1800s. He found that simply having physicians washing their hands can reduce the mortality rate of mothers in maternity rooms by 90%. The idea was too far from the traditional view;  the germ theory of disease had not been accepted in the medicine field.   Instead of defensing his findings in an objective way, Semmelweis lashed out against his critics in a series of open letters. They were addressed to various prominent European obstetricians at the time.  The letters were full of bitterness, desperation, and fury and were “highly polemical and superlatively offensive”, at times denouncing his critics as irresponsible murderers or ignoramuses.  Additionally, the combative way Semmelweis communicated his findings  and attaching colleagues did not help his career. He lost his job,  destitute, and died in a mental institution.  

Yes, managing one’s emotion and learning how to communicate with the academic community in an adverse environment are important if one needs a career to support oneself.

Now you learned the two fallacies about academic career, what actions can you take if you are early in your career?

• Attend professional conferences and mingle with your peers or superiors.
•  Find opportunities to collaborate with others. Indeed, deep thoughts come from within. Nevertheless,  they require intellectual stimulus, just as it requires air and water and sun for seeds to germinate. Intellectual stimulus  can be in many forms including the aforementioned academic campaign— one-on-one exchange of ideas or one-to-many (lectures), many-to-many (conferences, published papers).