Close Home Forum Sign up / Log in

Post doc- an adventure abroad?!

P

Hi All
So I tried searching and couldn't find anything similar. I was looking to hear from people who had gone from an English speaking country to Europe or another non English speaking country (ie other than Aus, Can,USA,NZ) to do a Post Doc. Particularly I'm looking to hear from those who did a PhD in the UK-which is where I am now. I am giving serious thought to this as I like learning languages and learning about new cultures. My field is cellular immunology. Also if you know of anyone who had gone over, I'd appreciate an introduction/being put in contact as I'd be fascinated to hear about their ups and downs. Doesnt matter id its academic or industry. All experiences would be appreciated.
Thanks for reading
Mi

T

Last year, jobs.ac.uk hosted a webinar where they discussed research opportunities in Germany for non-Germans. Three non-German postdocs gave their views about language, culture, work ethics etc. You may find it helpful.
http://www.jobs.ac.uk/careers-advice/working-in-higher-education/2467/postdoctoral-and-research-opportunities-in-germany-google-hangout-on-air-summary

B

I did this. I did a two year Marie Curie postdoc in Germany. I had a great time, but I already spoke German and had lived there for a year as an Erasmus student so it wasn't new territory. I knew other foreign postdocs who didn't speak German but tried to learn and they did find it quite frustrating, as they didn't make much progress and so felt they were stuck in a international bubble and not as integrated as they hoped. If you want to do it, go for it before Brexit starts limiting options. Two things that are worth thinking about if you want a UK academic job afterwards - make sure your supervisor has an international profile i.e. they're known outside their own country and that you have an academically plausible reason for going.

M

Hi all,
I had my PhD degree in Turin (Italy) - Department of Psychology and HRM. I had my viva in April 2016. A few colleagues of mine had an experience in Sweden after their PhD and they had a great time: summer school, good salary, help for accomodation.By the way, can you please tell me a forum about advice for post doc? All advice can be useful. Thanks for reading. MF

P

Thanks for the replies. I will be sure to check out the link provided. Ah yes....Brexit...(face in hands whilst nodding sadly)
bewildered- Do you work in the UK now?

B

Hi yes I do. When I came back I had a temporary teaching fellow job for a year and then got a lectureship. I think I did make my life harder than I needed to because I was enjoying life in Germany and was interested in staying there longer, so tried to do things to make my cv attractive there. But academic and non-academic jobs in my field there are heavily dependent on patronage, and as I hadn't done any of my degrees there, I was out of those channels. But when I realised and started applying for jobs in the UK, I'd taken my eye off the need to have the perfect cv for the REF, so was at a bit of a disadvantage. If I did it again, I'd make sure I kept in touch with UK contacts more, tried to co-author things with them and made sure I had someone from the UK system look at my application materials to check they were as effectively presented as possible.

48165