Where is your life now, and where is it going?

[Provost Harrison]

I like the sound of that sideways switch Makeo, respect to you

[The Viceroy]

Currently working for British Airways, based in Newcastle, but thankfully moving back to good old Heathrow soon ...

I really hate Newcastle

As for the future, well .. possibly another kid, my little girl keeps telling me she wants a friend (she's only 2)... but most of all, I plan to move perminantly to Bombay , and coming over here every so often.

In the process of putting some plans together to earn my living wherever I fancy ..

Ideally, I wish to work for 6months, and holiday for 6 months .. quite possible when you earn in UK, and spend in India

[Immortal Wombat]

Just finished school. Taking the summer off probably, going on some nice holidays, then getting some crappy temping work until Christmas, going to Madagascar for a few months, coming home via any three of: South Africa, USA, Australia, New Zealand, Thailand (money depending). Then fingers crossed, going to Cambridge Uni to study CompSci and Natural Sciences for three years. After than who knows. A doctorate, academia, fame and fortune as a novelist, or just an overqualified bum like PH.

[Neutrino]

I'm also a student at the University of Texas at Austin, majoring in computer science and biology.

I'm getting my B.S. in CS semester, but the biology degree will take another 3 semesters or so.. and I haven't decided which biology sequence to focus on (kinda leaning towards evolution/ecology/behavior though).

After I graduate I'm planning on either grad school or med school, kinda undecided so far, especially since there aren't a lot of bioinformatics/computational bio programs at schools yet.

[Eli]

Well, if so, it's not so bad (especially if in lab conditions). But still... Certainly, I feel admiration for how young Israelis take their patriotic duties.

We get free BA, potentially free MA and officer's rank. Patriotism my ass.

[The Vagabond]

Originally posted by Eli

Well, if so, it's not so bad (especially if in lab conditions). But still... Certainly, I feel admiration for how young Israelis take their patriotic duties.

We get free BA, potentially free MA and officer's rank. Patriotism my ass.

Not exactly free. You have to spend 6 years in the army. A typical Soviet person (or, for that matter, a typical Soviet Jew) would not consider it a good deal (well, unless some higher motives are involved).

[Odin]

After I graduate from High school next spring I am planning on going to Minnesota State University at Moorhead (Fargo, ND's largest suburb) to get a B.A. in Biotechnology. Then I will go the U of Minnesota at Minneapolis and get a Ph.D. in Evolutionary Biology. I want to do research using DNA and RNA to trace relationships between organisms, especially among protists and bacteria.

[Sirotnikov]

Well, the army isn't that very bad.

And it is quite good to people who work in non-combat duties. Sure, you can't even begin to compare it to the US army. Marines there, have a better life than top officers in Israel.

But it is a nice life for people who are rather smart and can go straight to non-combat officer duties

Or as my class mate said just today in our gifted class ending of school celebration, "now we're off to the army. Some of us are going to run on hills with weapons in hands... but most of us are going to sit in front of the computer all day, eating cookies."


I've finished high-school as a gifted kid. My grades aren't THAT good, because I became a bit tired of studying and that is no good at all.

So now It's IDF service for me. And no I'm not going to be a grunt. I'm (hoping that I'm) gonna be the one eating cookies

[Sir David]

Originally posted by Boddington's
Hey, welcome back Sir D..

Hey you too!

Wazzup?

[Mercator]

I'm studying AI, specialized in Computational Linguistics, at the University of Amsterdam. I started my graduation project somewhere in early 2002 and still haven't done ****. And I don't have a job either (although that's something I plan to change).

... down the drain.

I've been trying to get myself motivated again, but it's not really working... Not just for my studies by the way, but for pretty much everything.



...

[Drogue]

Originally posted by Kramerman
nice dream, your chocolate better be reasonablely priced

Of course it will be, I won't be doing that for money. If I get the money I'd love to do it free (gift-aid kind thing) but doubt that will be able to happen. I told my mum about that, the first thing she said was "You don't need a Oxford degree for that"


Provost:

Originally posted by Provost Harrison
Going? Considering that, it is a tricky decision and I am still finding it hard to find direction...I have decided I don't want to stay in the lab for much longer, I realised when I left my PhD after a lot of careful thought that that is not where I want to go. However I have found myself to be ruthlessly efficient and organised...

I am not afraid of hard work, but I want it to be recognised...any suggestions?

Do you want to something specifically tied to what you did for your degree and PhD? You could try pharma companies, but that would probably involve lab work. You could try some other science based field, if that interests you, although pay isn't generally good in specific science based jobs in my experience (my dad's a recently retired physicist, who's worked in technical science jobs all his life). Teaching could be a good option, but if you don't like being taken for a fool, public secondary education may not be for you. It can be utterly infuriating trying to teach people who are made to be there, and for the most part, pretty uninterested in their work (or so my teachers say). It is also much work and stress for peanuts, in comparison to normal graduate and postgraduate pay, and you could feel a little wasted. Have you thought about going back to university to teach?

If none of that strikes you, even in this economic climate, there are still *some* generic graduate jobs out there. With your degree and PhD, you have a certain edge over many other applicants, so you could think of applying for some generic jobs to see. I'm not sure if it's still there, but www.milkround.com looked good last time I saw it.

If you can't find work you want here, have you thought about going to a different country, maybe even the US? With an Oxford degree and post-grad, it would look pretty impressive and be something a little different there. Also much bigger job market, with far more (and better paid) science jobs there.

The first thing I would do, would be to brainstorm a few ideas of things that you think you might like to do as a career. What sort of environment do you want to work in? Do you want a technical or generic job? Do you want to stay in your area, or even in the UK? What do you want to be doing in 10 years time? Answer some of those, and then search through job websites, papers or careers services for jobs that match them. You could even take a job suitability test, if you place any faith in those. You say you are not organised. That is the first thing to do, organise yourself, what you want to do, and then start going out to try to find it.

The economy may be slowing down, but with unemplyment as low as it is, companies are looking for a few good people, which can be hard to find. If you feel the need, brush up on a few skills or take a few courses in things that are very employable, like computing skills. Learn about interviews or the aptitude tests that companies sometimes give to applicants. Anything that makes you look better, both on paper and in an interview.

IMHO, you need to do a couple of things. Most importantly, you need to get organised, and decide what you want to do, how and where you want to work, etc. Then you have to make yourself more employable, by learning generic skills if applying for that type of job, or brushing up on technical skills if applying for a specific job. Once you have done those, it is much easier to go out and find a job that suits you and that you suit. If you find a company you like, talk to the Oxford Careers Service, they have all sorts of contacts, ex-students usually, who are working in many fields, and can put you on to someone who could help find you a job. Networking is important in a climate when jobs are not as advertised, and when many are filled because someone knows a person suitable for it.

Bottom line (before I waffle on any more ): if you know what you want, it is much easier to be motivated and to go out and get it. Think of what you want to do, and then search for jobs you like, and write applications. Also, a last though, do you CV up. Many people (my brother especially) fall down on their CV, as it either is way to long (put everything that you want them to read on the first page) or doesn't make enough of their talents and achievements.

I wish you the best of luck in finding the job you want.

[Drogue]

Originally posted by Mercator
I'm studying AI

I would love to study that, if only I knew enough about computers. I read a book on Complexity Theory a year or two ago that really sparked an interest in AI. It was talking about adaptive systems, and evolutionary biology, but modelled on computers. Was absolutely facinating to me, but I am now comp sci or biologist

What is your graduation project on?

[Kuciwalker]

Life??? what's that? I don't have one...

I'm a rising 10th grader. I'm several years ahead in math, so I'm taking calculus next year, along with AP computer science and AP biology. 11th grade I plan to take Linear Algebra/Differential Equations, AI/Supercomputer Applications, AP Physics, and Advanced Optics I & II/Quantum Mechanics. My parents think I'm nuts . Year after that I have my senior tech project (or maybe a mentorship: a thingy where you basically work as an intern at a research institute). I'm taking Multivariable Calculus and AP statistics. I *may* take DNA Science I & II and Neurobiology. I want to go to MIT and major in Computer Science, math and/or physics (I don't know how specific they want it to be). I may also want to do some stuff with biology. I then want to eventually get a doctorate .

I think that math, physics, and computer science all tie together nicely and complement each other. The reason I'm doing AP bio (and maybe those other bio courses I mentioned) is because I found bio this year fascinating.

[Provost Harrison]

Originally posted by Odin
After I graduate from High school next spring I am planning on going to Minnesota State University at Moorhead (Fargo, ND's largest suburb) to get a B.A. in Biotechnology. Then I will go the U of Minnesota at Minneapolis and get a Ph.D. in Evolutionary Biology. I want to do research using DNA and RNA to trace relationships between organisms, especially among protists and bacteria.

For your level that is extraordinarily specific. Go into the life sciences, but sheesh, you've got a long time yet to decide on the title of your PhD thesis...you might find there is something else you prefer. I've always had a penchant for immunology

[Odin]

Originally posted by Provost Harrison
For your level that is extraordinarily specific. Go into the life sciences, but sheesh, you've got a long time yet to decide on the title of your PhD thesis...you might find there is something else you prefer. I've always had a penchant for immunology

I am also thinking about microbiology or anthropology, but Evo. Biology has been my dream since 8th grade. My Ideas about who is related to who would drive the Orthodoxy mad. Curently I am obsessed with the evolution of flowering plants. in the passed I have been obsessed with protists and invertabrate animals.

Skywalker: I thought I was smart, you must be some kind of supergenius or somthing! I would gladly study biology with you.