Choosing a Career in Academia

My route to an academic job was not the traditional one most students hear about. Throughout my time as a Ph.D. student, I wrestled with whether I was going pursue a career in academia or industry. Prior to beginning my job search, I had a running a pros and cons list to help me determine which career path would best suit me. While minor things changed on the list, the biggest pro of pursuing a career in academia for me (teaching) was always the biggest con of industry. The biggest con of academia for me (publishing/grants) was always the biggest pro of industry.

I became a teaching assistant in undergrad and after a total of 8 semesters as a TA, I knew I would love running my own class. During grad school my Ph.D. was funded by large projects with UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh and I had the opportunity to mentor undergraduate students on the project. From these experiences, I knew I wanted to teach. However, I also struggle with writing, and if I’m being honest, I am afraid of it. I also hate rejection, which makes the publication process a literal nightmare for me.

I landed an operations research (O.R.) internship during my second year of undergrad and continued my internship throughout college. During that time, I was able to experience an O.R. position in industry. As a graduate student I was on several projects with UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh that required me to directly interact with the hospital staff at all levels, including the executive leadership, physicians, nurses, and staff. My internship and graduate school experience made me interested in industry, especially healthcare.

When it ultimately came time to apply to jobs, I still had no idea what to do or where to apply. I sat down and thought about what I really wanted out of my career and my personal life and I began to make my list of requirements for jobs. I did not apply everywhere because I knew that I would not be happy in every position. First, I wanted to live in or within driving distance of a city. Second, I really liked teaching and I wanted to teach undergraduates. Third, I wanted to continue solving problems and conducting research in the healthcare realm.

I decided that I was going to apply to academia first, and if nothing panned out, then I would apply to some industry jobs. Because I wanted to work with undergraduates, I decided to apply to higher education institutions where I could focus on undergraduate teaching. In the end, I applied to four positions (three academic faculty positions and one industry position), each one that I felt hit every checkmark on my list. While it may seem like a low number, I only applied to places if I truly felt that I could go there and be happy. When I got the offer at the United States Naval Academy, I compared it against my other offers and it best fit everything I wanted out of the three. Since joining the faculty at USNA, I have only confirmed that I made the right decision in pursuing an academic career path. I love teaching my students, I’m mentoring new undergraduate students in research, and I’m starting new research projects that I’m really excited about! My best advice for anyone on the job market is to consider your goals for both your career and personal life and make sure that when you are applying for a job, or considering taking a job, you have the possibility to achieve all your goals.