The most obvious way to learn about all the administrative work that goes into running a lab is to ask one's advisor. But it doesn't always work. Once when I asked about funding, I was told I "didn't need to worry about it". I think my advisor was feeling stressed about the level of funding he had and how to distribute it. It irritated me though, because how are students supposed to learn things like how to manage a lab's finances when no one will disscuss it because they don't want to disclose any worries?
This is a rather isolated example, as Academic Advisor really explains a lot of what goes in the department, the politics of our field, etc. Certainly Research Advisor seems to tell me pretty much anything (everything?), but it's a little different with her because I'm the only student in her lab, so there isn't such a structured hierarchy. They both encourage me to go to meetings, introduce me to visiting scientists, discuss proposal ideas, and whatever else. Overall, my advisors rock. But I know that most students struggle with this stuff, perhaps not even knowing what they're missing. It must be especially difficult for students in really big labs with famous advisors who travel frequently. But the trade-off is the association they get with a flashy name.
Mrswhatsit has a couple of really great posts on this topic.
On one hand, I appreciate being sheltered from the nasty or not-fun parts of science. On the other, I want to learn how to deal with it all. At the very least, I want to know what I'm getting into. I want to be ableto make an informed decision about what kind of carrer to try for when it's time to apply for jobs.
2 comments:
I totally agree students aren't taught in grad school, or even during a postdoc, all the skills they will need as PIs. Most people just learn them on the fly when they need to, but I think it's great that you're trying to gather information now.
Sounds like your advisor is usually pretty good about sharing that kind of information. Perhaps your question about funding simply caught him on a bad day? Funding can be a particularly sensitive topic nowadays.
I've found that junior faculty are great for answering these sorts of questions. They are new enough at it to have given a lot of thought to what they wish they'd known earlier, and to remember what it's like to be curious about it but have no access to the information. With senior faculty, you're more likely to get the "What do you mean, how does funding work?" reaction.
agreed! So much you don't really find about until you're calf deep in it.
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