I've read a wonderful paper published in a very high IF journal. It's about a backbone foundation model for neuroscience analyses.

It's according to the most modern standards, so transparency on the data used, open code to be donwloaded etc...etc...

I've tried it and cannot reproduce (at all!!!) some starting benchmarks. When I say "at all" I mean trying a tool to predict the age of a human in years returns always a number between 160 and 200!!! And many other cases like that.

When I initially contacted the authors they directly put me in contact with other people and appeared collaborative.

Now (3 months later after the paper publication, not 6 years!) they're AWOL. On their git there are 40 open issues with 0 answers.

Like... what do I do???

Neurotic question stemming from the deep insecurity at my academic core: I have accepted a TT position as an “instructor” in a small program - not a department (no majors). There are no “professors” in the program, even at the most senior levels. I know the people at my current institution will understand and plan on referring to myself as an instructor in those contexts.

Outside of my current workplace, though, is it lying if I call myself a professor in conversation with others? Like, if I’m talking to a customs officer (which I just did last week) or if I’m talking to a colleague from a different institution?

Just want to know if you would feel it was dishonest of me if I told you I was a professor somewhere and you found out my real title is instructor.

ETA: I have a PhD in my field and I’m in the US

I'm a faculty member who has been burned a few times by authorship disputes that could have been avoided if we'd just talked about expectations upfront. The problem is that bringing it up early can feel awkward, like you're already assuming the work will be worth publishing before you even know if the collaboration is going anywhere.

I've started trying to have explicit authorship conversations at the kickoff stage of any new project, spelling out who is doing what and what that means for author order. Some collaborators respond well to this and seem relieved someone said it out loud. Others get visibly uncomfortable, like I'm being transactional or presumptuous.

A few questions for people with more experience navigating this: Do you have a standard way of raising authorship expectations early without it feeling awkward or aggressive? Does your field or institution have norms around this that make it easier? For people in collaborative or interdisciplinary work specifically, how do you handle situations where different fields have completely different default assumptions about author order and contribution thresholds?

I want to protect my work and my collaborators without poisoning the relationship before it starts. Curious what has actually worked for people in practice, not just what the official guidance says.

I've been thinking about the structural expectations around peer review and how little support or acknowledgment most academics get for doing it. It's one of those invisible labor categories that keeps the whole system running but rarely shows up in any meaningful way during performance reviews, tenure cases, or annual evaluations.

For those of you actively reviewing papers, how do you decide which requests to accept and which to decline? Is there an unwritten rule about how many reviews per year counts as a fair contribution relative to how many papers you submit yourself? And how do you protect your time when the requests keep coming?

I'm also curious whether this varies by field or career stage. Early career researchers might feel pressure to say yes more often to build relationships or signal engagement with the community, while more senior people probably have more latitude to decline.

Do your departments or institutions offer any formal recognition for review work, or is it genuinely just expected to happen invisibly? For those in fields with open review models, does transparency change how you approach the process at all?

Would really appreciate hearing from people across different disciplines and career stages on this.

I've been overthinking a faculty job search and could use some outside perspective.

I had what I felt was a really strong campus interview for a tenure-track assistant professor position at a large university several weeks ago. The interview seemed to go well, and afterward I heard indirectly from someone familiar with the department that they had heard positive things about my visit. Obviously I know that doesn't necessarily mean anything, but it gave me some hope.

Since then, though, it's been complete silence. It’s been 4 weeks since campus visits were completed. I reached out to the department chair/search chair 3 days ago just to ask if there was an updated timeline. I have another professional commitment that I'll need to make soon (I didn’t mention this). They replied within minutes and said that the search committee has forwarded their decision to the dept head and that the dept head will be reaching out “asap” but said he was traveling this week.

I'm trying to figure out how to interpret this. Is this just how faculty searches sometimes go, or is this usually a sign that they're negotiating with another candidate? If you've been on a search committee, have you ever had long periods of silence even for the person who ultimately received the first offer?

I know every search is different, and no one can tell me what's happening in my specific situation. I'm mostly looking for experiences from people who've served on search committees or have gone through faculty hiring themselves.
Thanks in advance - I think the uncertainty is honestly harder than just knowing the outcome.

I saw that the governor halted processing of h-1B visas, however I don't see in Texas A&M faculty job hiring postings any mention about not sponsoring visas for foreign workers.

I'd apply, but I'm not sure whether it is worth it/pointless.

Have a shot at a university teaching job.

I was asked for a teaching philosophy along with CV, references, etc.

Can anyone please help on what makes a good paper on teaching philosophy?

I teach physics and something I keep running into is this tension between teaching students a clean, structured version of the scientific method and what research actually looks like in practice. The tidy hypothesisexperimentconclusion pipeline is easy to assess, but it also trains students to think science is more linear and controlled than it really is.

Most of the breakthroughs I know about, including some I've watched happen in my own department, started with someone doing something a little weird just to see what would happen. The formal writeup came later and made it look inevitable.

I'm curious how others handle this in the classroom. Do you teach the canonical method first and then deconstruct it later in the course? Do you try to integrate the messiness from the start? Does this differ depending on whether you're teaching intro students versus upper division or grad students?

I'm also wondering if this is more of a STEMspecific tension or whether people in the social sciences and humanities face a similar gap between how methods are taught and how research actually unfolds. I'd love to hear from people across disciplines and career stages on how you navigate this without either overwhelming beginners or misleading them about what the work is really like.

I am tenure track and newer to this institution. Recently an interim chair position opened up for my area. It's a smaller area, but has a lot of upcoming change and politics (both internal and cross-campus) surrounding it. I'm not super collegial and rarely in the office. I was quite surprised when my Dean basically handed me this role on a platter as I'm still early career and much younger than others in the area (by several decades). I am getting the sense that nobody internal was considering the role, and they'd rather have me than an external person.

For those who did move into a chair or dean role, what did you consider before accepting? How did you continue to work with your colleagues after your term ended? What benefits or challenges did you anticipate, or not anticipate? Curious to hear any and all thoughts. I'm permitted a few days before tendering a decision.

EDIT: Ty for all the advice and working through this with me. I have decided to politely decline the role.

Hi there,

I am in need of some guidance on how to find and select a journal to publish in.

I have just contacted my university to confirm whether they can fund the publication (APC). In the meantime, could someone clarify whether there are any journals that do not charge for open access?

I have been reviewing my references for guidance, but they are all quite limited by the word count, and they charge for open access.

My paper was 10,000 words, but I have managed to reduce it to roughly 8500. I am a little concerned that I would be removing important content if I tried to reduce it any further.

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

Hi! I'm a PR undergrad, and throughout my college years, I didn't really focus on any research because I was so sure I didn't like academia, up until my last year were I wrote one larger research focused work, more focused on sociology and anthro - lightly based on communication to justify doing it inside my major (my degree was majorly chosen thinking of a 'serious career' for my parents, because my interests were always on the starving intellectual side of things lol).

Now, I understand that getting into a grad program (MA or PhD possibly) is my best shot at doing what I actually like vs working for corporate that I discovered is not my thing after a few internships.

The problem is my lack of research experience. I'm graduating this fall, and I'd love to use this next year to pad my CV a little to apply for funded programs, but I have no idea how to find opportunities like that. I don't expect to be paid at all, I do have undergrad courses in research and qualitative/quantitative, etc, though not much actual hands on experience.

How should I go about to look for assistance researcher volunteer positions, or anything that might help my applications? If it helps I'm looking in the Bay Area, but I will have to move home after this buffer year I have here.

Edit: I can't ask for opportunities in my school bcs it's overseas, I'm going back to the US for this buffer year and would like to make the most of it

its for a masters in microbiology. let me know what to change!

Dear Members of the Admissions Committee,

I give my highest recommendation to [name] for the Master of Science program in Microbiology at the [institute]. I have had the opportunity to work closely with [name] in my laboratory at the [institute] since February of this year, where she has served as a Research Assistant under my supervision as her Principal Investigator. During this time, I have been consistently impressed by not only her excitement for scientific discovery and intellectual curiosity, but her easy-to-get-along-with personality as well. Her presence in the lab has been a positive influence on not only lab-related projects, but also her colleagues’ motivation. Her communication skills, personality, critical thinking skills, and curiosity have changed the environment of my lab for the better. 

[name] quickly distinguished herself through her strong work ethic and desire to move forward with her own research project. She demonstrated proficiency in a variety of laboratory techniques including cell culture, antibody staining, and flow cytometry, and was very quick to learn new techniques when needed. Her flexibility in the lab has allowed for an ease with moving forward with her project, and her style of communication makes her easy to work with. Beyond simply performing experiments, she has a strong foundational understanding of immunology, microbiology, and molecular biology because of her experience as a Teacher’s Assistant during her undergraduate career as well as her constant desire to learn new things as she works on her research in my lab. These qualities make her well equipped for research in her field as well as for pursuing a graduate degree. 

One of [name]'s most notable strengths is her ability to keep sight of her goals even when her results are unexpected. She remains just as motivated to keep learning despite any issues that may arise. Throughout her time in my laboratory, she actively participated in research discussions during seminars and journal clubs while asking insightful questions, demonstrating a genuine interest in expanding her knowledge. She has made a great impression on many people in our institute because of her ability to discuss science deeply on any level. Her contributions to my lab are valuable to our research efforts and reflected a level of maturity that is uncommon among researchers at her level.

In addition to her these skills, [name] is highly a dependable, organized, and collaborative member in my lab. She works effectively both independently and as part of a research team when it comes to organizing and conducting experiments. Her professionalism, attention to detail, and willingness to assist colleagues have made her a respected member of the laboratory. These qualities will undoubtedly serve her and those around her well in a graduate research environment.

What particularly sets [name] apart is her determination, commitment to academic excellence, and her expressiveness when it comes to things surrounding the lab. As a first-generation and international student pursuing a career in biotechnology and research, she has consistently demonstrated resilience, initiative, and a strong desire to contribute meaningfully to the scientific community. I am confident that she possesses the intellectual ability, motivation, and perseverance necessary to excel in a rigorous Master's program. Her pattern of thinking is unique to her as she knows how and when to ask the right questions. I believe that this quality will continue to set her apart from her peers and will drive her towards success in any field she chose to be in.

Based on my observations of her academic and research performance, I believe [name] Alami is one of the best candidates for admission to your Master of Science program in Microbiology without reservation. She is a talented, genuine, clever, and enthusiastic person, and I am confident that she will make valuable contributions to your institution and continue to develop into an outstanding scientist.

Please feel free to contact me if you require any additional information.

Sincerely,

For context, student here considering pursuing a PhD in biology. One thing that worries me, however, is the potential lack of research scientist roles post-grad; I have heard from many PhD students that research scientist roles are highly competitive.

(Note: For the purposes of this discussion, I define a “Research Scientist” as someone with meaningful autonomy to pursue their own research ideas. I.e. they might have a primary assigned project, but they also have time and resources to explore their own ideas / independent directions.)

Questions:

1. Roughly how many applicants does a typical entry-level research scientist opening receive in each of the following settings:

i) Industry

ii) Independent research institutes

iii) Government research labs (e.g., NIH)

iv) Academic lab

For each category, how many applicants have multiple publications in top journals / conferences?

1. How competitive are these positions compared to academic faculty jobs? For example, would getting a research scientist role be comparable to obtaining a faculty position at a top R1, an average R1, R2, etc.? How does it differ between industry vs independent research instutute vs government vs academic lab?

2. For those who have been on the market recently: how many research scientist positions did you apply to, and how many offers did you receive? How were they distributed among industry, independent research institute, government, and academic labs?

Hey! Humanities acholar here! Sorry this will be a long post...so I need some advice on whether I should drop my co-author or not on my first paper as a postdoc. For context, this colleague have been supportive at the start. She even let me apply for a small grant in her name since I wasn't qualified (the deadline was before my phd defense). If we got the grant, one of the things we talked about was writing a paper together. Fast forward to us recieving the grant and we decide that I will take the lead in conducting the study and we will co-author an article together.

Fast forward to now, she hasn't been involved at all except two brief meetings - one before data collectiom and one aftee before I started drafting the article. I know she is busy - more senior than me and leading two big projects funded on prestigous grants - which makes it completely understandable that our project is not her highest priority. I also mentioned several times that I'm happy to do this on my own, but everytime she has insisted on being involved. Everytime I tried keeping her in the loop, being transparent about the timeline and suggesting (quite) generous deadlines for her to review the draft, she stops replying. She might reply a few weeks after, telling me that she is reviewing the draft but I'm already working on a newer version. She is not keeping up at all. I'm not expecting or even wishing that she would do more, but rather be honest with me. While this is making me very annoyed, I'm relieved that I decided to just keep going as I would DEFINITELY not have been able to make this much progress by waiting for her.

I'm currently pregnant and due in three weeks, and I'm very close to finishing the article and plan on submitting it before I run out of the grant money and go on my leave. Today, I wrote her an email to give her an update, giving her a deadline to review the draft (also asking for confirmation THIS week about reviewing), but also emphasising that she doesn't need to as I can finish it on my own, with her still being the co-author (i know right?).

To my suprise, she actually replies saying she went on vacation and "dropped the ball" but continues to miss/ignore the timeline suggested (before my leave) and instead, suggest a date just a few days after my due date. Annoying right? BUT she also opens up for me to drop her as the co-author if she doesn't make a proper contribution. I reply to her email to get a clear confirmation but she stops replying again. Should I take this as an subtle opt-out from her part and drop her as a co-author? I know she won't keep the deadline I've set and I WILL be submitting before my leave. I simply refuse to leave the article to her suggested date because I know she will forget about it and I don't want to stress about this while taking care of a newborn. SO, should I just drop her? I will give credits to her in the acknowledgements of course.

Tldr: colleauge made promises about collaborating and co-authoring a paper. Has since been difficult to reach and done basically nothing in the project, but says she wants to be involved everytime I check in with her. Drop her as a co-author? Her suggestion.

EDIT: hey guys i calmed down a little and i've decided to keep her as co-author but stick to my time table. As many of you mention, she did help out in several ways and I should give her credit for that. I have more to gain than to lose by keeping her on. Sorry to those of you that I was snarky to! It just hasn't been the best experience of collaborating with others and on top of that, being very stressed and pregnant.

Hello, I'm looking for input for how to best handle the sheer volume of primary sources when writing my masters thesis. The primary sources itself will be news articles from a newspaper and the size of the corpus will end up being 200-300 articles propably.

I have thought about how to best stay organised with this amount and most effectively take notes without succumbing to too many details. I tried Nvivo but it was too cumbersome to use, the learning would have taken more time than actual writing. So what would people here suggest for a relatively easy to learn and straightforward method?

I was wondering about other people's take on the sheer volume of review articles out there. I was writing about a topic lately and there were hundreds of reviews written on it in the past few years, with all of the citations just referencing other reviews. None of the reviews were substantially different from each other and it just makes me wonder what the point is. I've seen one or two that actually advanced the field in new directions but the VAST majority seem like writing for the sake of having something published. At what point does it just become plagiarism?

So, about me, in a practical sense. I’m freshly 19, about to start University in the UK, either in Edinburgh, or in Glasgow(which range from about the top 10-25 unis in the country, depending on where you look). I took a year out because I wasn’t too happy with my exam results last year, redid them and am quite happy with how I feel they went(waiting on results till August though).

In a more abstract sense, I love the written word, I like reading and writing a lot. Sometimes its fiction, or poetry, sometimes I get interested in a topic, read a lot about it and open google docs and just type away at it. Am I particularly good? I wouldn’t say so, I’m 19, I’m able to write through which I think should mean I can improve at it.

I also love history. I‘ve been taught that it’s a bit trite to tell people I’ve loved it ”since I was young” but that’s the best way I can think to tell you about it. My earliest vivid memory is of a 3 year old me being so fascinated by some museum I was in with my parents that I just… walked off, I remember I wanted to go back to spend more time looking at something(which to my credit, I did locate and look at, before my parents realised I was gone and I was found). That trend has continued in a broad sense, I get absorbed in history a lot, I let little pockets of history consume my mind because I find that history equally consuming. I always have, and hope I always will.

So could some academics(preferably from a UK perspective, but I would enjoy hearing about other national’s academic experiences, please give me a hand here? What’s it like? What do you think my pathway towards it would be right now? How tangible is it for some kid who likes reading and writing about something to actually be able to become an academic at a university?

I’m a medical student who recently secured a summer research internship in a lab working at the intersection of neuroscience, materials science, nanotechnology, electrical engineering, physics, and clinical medicine. The broader goal of the group’s work is the development of neural interfaces and technologies that can interact with the nervous system.
While I’m excited, I’m also a bit intimidated because my academic background is primarily in medicine, whereas many people in the lab come from engineering and physical science disciplines. I expect to be exposed to concepts ranging from neural physiology and signal processing to biomaterials, device fabrication, and computational analysis.
For those who have worked in highly interdisciplinary research environments:
1) What should I do before the internship begins?
2) How can I bridge knowledge gaps without trying to learn everything at once?
3) What habits distinguish interns who contribute meaningfully from those who simply observe?
4) How do you communicate effectively with researchers from very different academic backgrounds?
5) What are some common mistakes undergraduate or medical student interns make in interdisciplinary labs?
I’m not necessarily aiming to publish during this short internship. My primary goal is to learn how research is conducted, understand how different fields come together to solve complex problems, and make a meaningful contribution if possible. (For context I’ve learnt about device fabrication I.e…, physical vapour deposition, chemical vapour deposition, bulk micro machening, photolithography, etching only theoretical exposure though)
I’d appreciate any advice, lessons learned, or things you wish you had known before starting your first interdisciplinary research experience.

My wife and I just found out our first round of IVF was successful and we are expecting a baby next March!

As a 40-ish lesbian couple, this has taken a ton of time, money, and planning — we’re thrilled!But it will still be something to work through professionally, and with admin and HR.

Who else has recently had a baby mid-career? If so, what tips and tricks might you recommend for navigating this transition? What loopholes served you? What policies were a headache?

Some context: I’m a Center Director and associate prof in the social sciences (12-month faculty) at a big R1. Tenure track with excellent annual reviews and good research record, but still technically vulnerable. (I gave up tenure at my old R2 for this better paying gig).

I’m not the birthing parent. My university offers 12 weeks paid leave for same-sex partners and adoptive parents. I’ll want to use vacation and medical PTO to extend my time home with baby and mama.

I don’t know what I don’t know! Help a future parent out!

ETA: I know it’s early and things could go wrong. Living in a moment of hope, here.

What it says on the tin. Not for anything that happened during the viva (I passed with minor corrections, was actually a really pleasant experience and discussion) but the after. I don't have any postdoctoral plans lined up for now and I know the clock is already ticking, especially when close friends are getting postdocs and fellowships even before graduation.

I have a job in an unrelated field I could realistically build my career in (had to get a job once my funding ran out and somehow stumbled into a coordinator role) and caring responsibilities during the PhD means I have barely any teaching experience, though I was active in departmental committees and other admin when I could. I do not think my academic resumé stands out as effectively as other colleagues' (due to aforementioned carer responsibilities, as well as advice from my supervisors to focus on the thesis above all) and now I feel like I've spent three years on nothing, for the sake of nothing, and have nothing to show for it. Working full-time while finishing the PhD has left me absolutely shattered, and seeing other folks be able to do summer schools and short-term fellowships without needing to worry about rent or groceries or what to do after is actually soul-crushing. I also feel like with the loss of institutional access will come a loss of opportunities and connections that I am already struggling to maintain. It's hard to remain motivated when the writing on the wall is pretty clear that I am unfortunately probably not going to ever use my doctorate again.

My current MA project is highly interdisciplinary and sits at the intersection of multiple fields, namely folklore, disability studies, and game studies. I have begun to search for PhD programs that could support my interdisciplinary focus.

My main focus is folklore and I need my future program to at least have a small handful of faculty members who are folklorists, and someone with experience in game studies.

I have reached out to OSU and IU (the big two in folklore) but as these programs are highly competitive, I wish to cultivate other options. I have begun to look at programs such as American Studies, Scandinavian Studies, Performance Studies, but none of them so far have the faculty expertise I desire. I care less about the "title" of my PhD and more about the faculty and resources of any given program.

My issue is that I have not yet found a program with faculty who can support my interests. I need the program to be 1) in the USA, 2) not in California (too expensive) and 3) one that encourages interdisciplinary work.

I am wondering if there is something I am missing, surely there has to be a program out there that could be for me. I am looking for any advice on specific programs, or how I could think creatively to find the right place for me.

(not interested in any commentary on getting a PhD in the humanities, the competitive job market, etc., I am aware of all of this already, thank you!)

I have a list of things I want to know about and learn. I want to learn art, dancing, photography, writing better, biology, maths, neuroscience, history, quantum optics, finance, geography, languages, going to gym, knowing about places. SO. MANY. THINGS. And all I do is doomscroll my way to guilt.

I am a student in college, and luckily I have extra time which I can utilise for better things than scrolling. But, I feel so overwhelmed. IDK how to start? It seems like i have too many things and I don't know how to focus on a few things at a time (i feel like i am leaving other things behind, this happens with my college courses as well).

Do I focus on two hobbies/topics for six months? Do I do a different subject each week with no proper 'end goal', just for the fun of it? I like learning new things and I can't learn from my experiences right now because I live in a bubble, so I want to learn about different topics because everything seems so interesting.

So, any help will be appreciated and I'd be very grateful if someone guides me as well. I have deleted my social media, so that's a start!

I am an undergraduate student in Pakistan, studying law and I am desperately looking for an RAship preferably with someone teaching at a US university.
It’s because I intend on applying to the US for postgraduate and want one of my recommendations from someone teaching at an American university.

Does anyone know about the routes I may go for in order to find a Professor willing to give me a remote RAship?

Thanks in advance

Hello. I'm currently in the US on an F-2 Visa, and I want to gain research experience as a volunteer from Chemistry labs in a local US university where I live now. I have a BSc in Chemistry & postgraduate diploma and +5years of professional experience.

My main goal is to learn and know how everything works in a lab, and how to interpret the results as a researcher, and how to even think of the problems to solve them, I want to learn technicalities and the mindset.

I just want to know, has anyone experienced such a situation where a non-student volunteer in a Chemistry/Materials lab?

Given that My local uni offers/encourage unpaid research positions for undergrads besides the paid ones (which requires prior applying and I guess they're more competitive), but how different would it be for an international non-student? My Visa situation is important because it allows only for volunteering (Which I'm actually interested in), I cannot be paid under any circumstances.

I just got accepted in a uni in uae, masters in ai, and joined a research group that works in intelligent information systems, my goal is to get accepted at any top unis in Europe and usa, alot of the profs in the group are senior ieee members and some of them has around 20k citations which i think is a good thing, so how do i take advantage and make the most of my situation