Part 7: Don't forget - IT IS EXCITING! by Amanda Rasmussen This has turned into quite a long article based on the advice and insecurities of 8 PIs of varying experience (see details at the end). Our intention is not to scare anyone off making the jump from post-doc to PI…but rather to let you know…

Part 6: Academic Imposter Syndrome (AIS- pronounced Ace) by Amanda Rasmussen Academic Imposter Syndrome (AIS): (I’ve decided to call it AIS (pronounced ace) because that sounds more positive) I’m not going to lie, this is something I struggle with on an almost daily basis. There are so…

Part 5: The Importance of Mentoring by Amanda Rasmussen Finding and making the most of good mentors is incredibly important (dare I say in particular for the transition from post-doc to PI?). There are blogs elsewhere about this (here) including my comments and experience so I won’t restate the…

Part 4: Building a team by Amanda Rasmussen As reflected by the length of this section, building a team is perhaps one of the biggest challenges to new academics. My team started as me, myself and I. And we don’t always agree! Aside from diluting the Gollum-style conversation, building a team is…

Part 3: Hitting the ground running - but not too fast! by Amanda Rasmussen Momentum/Time management: “I was told that starting your PI position will be slow, but I didn’t realize quite how slow it would be. After six months, I’m delighted that I’ve cleared all the paperwork and other hurdles…

Preparing an impressive CV: The DO’s and DONT’s of it The Transition from Postdoc to PI: Part 1 introduction The Transition from Postdoc to PI: Part 2 Isolation busting The Transition from Postdoc to PI: Part 3 Hitting the ground running - but not too fast! The Transition from Postdoc to PI:…

Part 2: Isolation Busting by Amanda Rasmussen “I was told to expect the isolation, but it's still difficult to move from a big, functioning lab with lots of people to being on your own.” –Erin Personally I was used to working independently having come through two fellowships but for me the isolation…

Part 1: Introduction by Amanda Rasmussen A cloudy day in June. I wait patiently outside an office for a meeting for which I’m 10 minutes early. The meeting is with a professor (Prof K) who has recently begun at Nottingham and whose research is of interest as a potential collaboration. As a newly…