Pathfinder Career Narratives is an ongoing series tracking the career choices and experiences of doctoral graduates. You can see all of the posts in the series here. You can find all the Pathfinder resources and opportunities here. Today’s blog is written by Dr Rachel Chin, Lecturer in History and Researcher Development Project Officer at the University of Glasgow. You can find Dr Chin on LinkedIn here, and at the University of Glasgow webpage here.
Name: Dr Rachel Chin
Doctorate subject area and year of completion: History, 2017
Role and employer: Lecturer in History and Researcher Development Project Officer, University of Glasgow
Approximate salary bracket of this type of role: It varies between roles
What exactly is an academic career path?
I completed my Doctoral degree in History in 2017. Today, I hold two separate yet interconnected posts at the University of Glasgow. Officially, on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday I am a Researcher Development Project Officer in the Research Culture & Researcher Development Team. On Thursday and Friday, I am a lecturer in War Studies in the College of Arts and Humanities. Of course, the reality of my working schedule is rather more complicated. However, allow me to set the present to one side for a moment. Because today I want to think about the steps that took me to where I am now.
Almost anyone who has completed or is in the process of completing a PhD will be thinking about where they want to go next. Academic careers are frequently, but not always, one of the options that are under consideration. This was certainly the case for me. However, another piece of generally accepted knowledge is that full time permanent academic posts, when they arise, are difficult to get. Other possibilities, such as Teaching Fellowships, Research Associate roles and Postdoctoral Fellowships are held up as stepping stones to more permanent positions. These existing structural/industry challenges certainly influenced how I made career choices and how I thought about my longer-term career trajectory. However, they were not the only factors that informed my thinking.
As an academic, my career path has and still does combine academic and non-academic posts. However, the point I want to make, indeed the key point of this reflection, is that my academic career path has not been and is not now ‘non-traditional’. Nor is it simply ‘traditional’ in the sense that many PhD holders experience years of precarity and uncertainty throughout their careers. Rather, my career path is my own. It is individual to me and in that sense, it is a reflection of my professional interests but also my personal wants and needs.
The career I have now, and the way it will evolve in future, is a product of four different drivers: 1) what I like to do (my skills and interests) 2) what I want to try (new or evolving interests) 3) where I want to be (friends, hobbies and personal connections) and 4) structural limitations. Let me clarify what I mean by walking you through a few of my career choices.
Immediately after completing my PhD, I made the decision to retain the part-time role that I had taken on during the fourth year of my Doctoral programme. I was the programme administrator for three MSc programmes in the Academic Centre of Reconstructive Science at King’s College London. The Centre trained specialists in (primarily) facial prosthetics and treated NHS patients out of Guy’s Hospital. One of the reasons that I chose to stay in this post was that I hugely enjoyed working with the team, students and patients. The role, and the connections that I made through it, fulfilled many of my personal and social needs.
This post also gave me the chance to explore and develop my evolving interest in better supporting students in academic research and writing skills. My line managers encouraged this interest, integrating two lectures in academic writing/research into the MSc in Maxillofacial Prosthetic Rehabilitation. As a result, I was able to gain experience teaching in an MSc environment. Coming from an Arts background I achieved new perspectives on research practices in a lab-based environment. Most importantly, I nurtured my growing interest in championing good academic practice and positive approaches to writing and research. This is an interest that I continue to develop in my current work.
A year out from my PhD I confronted a key moment of decision in my career. The most substantial structural factor that has impacted how I think about my career between 2017 and 2022 has been my immigration status. As an American, I needed a work visa to take on any new role after my Doctoral Extension Scheme visa expired, I was limited in the type of role that I could take on. I cannot overemphasise how frustrating this was. It has, undoubtedly, played a not insignificant role in my career narrative while also placing stress on my friendships and relationships.
It was this structural uncertainty that led me to apply for and accept a role to leave the UK and teach English in China. This role spoke to my sense of adventure but also my interest in connecting with my Chinese heritage and language. However, at the same time, I was waiting to hear the outcome of an application I had submitted for a three-year postdoctoral research associate role at the University of Glasgow. In June 2018 I interviewed for, was offered and accepted this post. I withdrew from my teaching post in China before it began.
Deciding to move to Glasgow to work as a research associate on the Arts and Humanities Research Council Project ‘The Weight of the Past in Franco-British Relations’ reflected my love of historical research and my desire to make this part of my career. But another reason that I was happy to come to Glasgow was that, as a city, it was a good fit with my personal interests and hobbies. I wanted to live somewhere with a solid culinary scene, where arts and music were thriving and where I didn’t have to drive! Glasgow ticked all the boxes. Relatedly, moving from London I was thrilled that Rightmove searches in my budget parameters returned actual flats and not just garages and parking spaces.
During my postdoctoral position I did a great many things that were part and parcel of an academic career. I conducted research, went to conferences and published a monograph. I convened my first honours module and furthered my interest in developing support for academic research and writing while supervising MSc dissertations. At the same time, I was working to connect with the wider University community. I joined the Postdoc Forum, where I learned about the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers and I grew my interest in education accessibility by volunteering with Widening Participation. In my local community I joined an orchestra so that I could continue playing the French Horn.
As my postdoctoral post was coming to an end in 2022, I was thinking about my next career step. The experiences I had had since completing my PhD, both academic and non-academic, influenced this process. My enjoyment conducting research motivated me to apply for my current lectureship. My interest in learning more about career development and development support led me to apply for my role as a Researcher Developer. The friendships, relationships and activities I was involved with in Glasgow made me certain that I wanted to stay in the city. Each of these considerations and drivers in my decision-making process was legitimate. More importantly, the decisions that I made to bring me to where I am today were the right ones for me.
So, what exactly is an academic career narrative? Viewed as a whole, my academic career shows that there is no single right way to take this journey. A whole plethora of personal, professional and structural factors, some within and some without my control, influenced how I considered and made my career choices. More importantly, my career and the interests that feed into my career are not static. They will continue to evolve and to be sharpened and refined in the months and years to come.
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