The Sequel to a PhD Podcast
How often are our careers, identities, ambitions defined by a story we wrote for ourselves way back early on in our lives? Or by expectations that are set by others, by our culture, or by something else outside of ourselves? For some of us, maybe this works out for a while and we find ourselves successful, high-achievers at what we set out to accomplish. But what happens when we discover along the way that the story we created for ourselves no longer feels right? And that the success we’ve achieved isn't as fulfilling as we expected?
Here, we talk about navigating the thoughts, transitions, and cultural expectations that come up when we realize that the current chapter of our lives no longer fit who we’ve become. We’ll talk about learning how to figure out what we really want, doing things differently, and supporting one another in pursuing what's true and meaningful for each of us as individuals. And how that pursuit can ultimately impact the world around us.
Hosted by Shirley Markant, PhD. For more, visit www.sequeltoaphd.com.
The Sequel to a PhD Podcast
Episode 10: From Academic Faculty to a Conservation Company and Creative Pursuits with Dr. Emily Dangremond
Welcome back to the podcast!
In this episode, I'm delighted to chat with Dr. Emily Dangremond, a PhD ecologist with an interest in plants, climate change, and conservation. After earning her PhD from UC Berkeley, doing a postdoc at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, and becoming an assistant professor at Roosevelt University, she recently left that role to work at a community-centered wildlife conservation company. Dr. Dangremond is also the host of "Kids Questions Answered", where she answers science questions posed by her son, and she has developed a scientific writing guide to help people overcome obstacles they encounter in scientific writing.
In this fun conversation, we talk about:
- The origins of her interest in ecology and conservation and how momentum shaped aspects of her career path.
- The role that recognizing her desired impact for her work played in making recent career decisions.
- The totally relatable worry of disappointing people around her by deciding to leave academia, and allowing space to focus on the question of "what's really important to me?"
- Thinking about career moves (and life) as a constant process of experimenting and calibrating. And recognizing that we don't have to have it all figured out right now.
- Reminders that we don't have to do it all ourselves, and that what we are doing is enough.
And lots of other excellent nuggets in this great conversation!
To learn more about Emily, visit https://emilydangremond.weebly.com/ or find her on Instagram @drdangerscience.
To find her scientific writing guide, visit Dr. Danger's Guide to Scientific Writing.
Or check out her podcast Kid's Questions Answered!
Thank you for listening!
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Know of anyone navigating what to do next after leaving bench science or academia? Sign up for the interest list for the Sequel to a PhD Incubator (you'll be the first to get the details about the new program!).
Or check out other resources from Sequel to a PhD: www.sequeltoaphd.com
