An open letter to my graduate students and post-docs
Clay Clark - @biochemprof
Dear Students and Post-docs,
I’ve learned a few things as my career in science has progressed from graduate student to post-doc to assistant, associate and finally professor. I’d like to share some of these pearls of wisdom with you in hopes that you’ll be able to use them during your journey as a scientist. I post these suggestions here because, although I see you working diligently in the lab, we haven’t had enough time recently to drink beer together and have this discussion.
Great Belgian Beers
A few years ago, when I was in graduate school at Texas A&M University, I was involved in a protein folding project. This was a new project started by my advisor, so there was a sense of urgency to spend the time required to learn new techniques in order to collect data, to attend classes and seminars, and to learn material on broader topics related to our work. This also helped me develop a passion for science. You too should develop a sense of urgency. JAYFK recently posted a blog entitled “5 Things you should know before dating a scientist”, and I repost point #4 here. Although this is a very funny and irreverent look at science, there also is good advice in this particular blog: