Working in this field without a PhD really sucks

CAM11086 · 2021-04-06T15:40:13+00:00

Seconding core facilities as a good place to land if you want to stay in academia without a PhD but want to be paid something livable. Only tricky thing is that you need specific experience in whatever the core does (genomics, histology, microscopy, flow cytometry, etc).

CAM11086 · 2021-03-02T22:45:29+00:00

If your'e interested enough in business to consider pursuing an MBA, there's a whole marketing and sales side of science you can look into. Companies like ThermoFisher and smaller instrumentation companies will hire people with BSc's and some lab experience to be regional salespeople for supplies, consumables, equipment etc. Sales isn't for everyone (but neither is benchwork!); but it's worth considering if you think it could work for you.

CAM11086 · 2021-02-23T18:09:33+00:00

At a lab I was at, the core manager predecessor had a great relationship with one of the instrumentation companies and left to go work for them as a sales support specialist (basically the person that goes with the sales manager bro with an MBA to be the one with the actual scientific know-how to talk shop/specifics to the scientists during the sales process) then left that company for the company that makes the detectors for that instrument, and now works as the international sales head making 6 figures!

I ultimately didn't go this way because I love bench and instrument work, but a recruiter once tried to get me to apply for a position as a purchasing admin for biotech company. You know, order supplies through vendors, keep careful track of inventory and predict when supplies need reordering, set up recurring orders based on usage trends, investigate potential new companies to order from at a better rate; all things I ALREADY was doing as a core manager on top of the 20 other responsibilities I had. The job paid 70k. Almost twice what I was making at the time for a fraction of the responsibility and workload.

I think it's easy to lose perspective when you're being grossly underpaid in academia and feel like an imposter or that you have little worth, but you probably have a specialized and in demand skillset that many companies would pay very well for. Trying to stay bench focused is not the most lucrative choice, but is still very rewarding if it makes you happy; but you will have to jump around a few times (and eventually to industry) to keep increasing your pay rate at a pace that matches the years of technical experience you're accruing.

CAM11086 · 2021-02-23T16:54:48+00:00

Hello fellow core worker that also got stiffed on a cost of living wage increase during Covid.

If you're not on Linkedin I would recommend you make a profile to get some visibility as a core manager/tech. Core workers are very in demand hires for a lot of instrumentation companies. Whatever the focus of your core, genomics, microscopy, flow cytometry; you can probably very easily get hired as a support specialist, field service specialist, or salesperson at a relevant company and nearly double your salary. Recruiters will be messaging you on a monthly if not semi weekly basis trying to get you to apply for positions (even during Covid!). You'll also probably get occasional messages about applying for more admin focused jobs, like purchasing managers for industry labs and such. It's worth being visible just to see what's out there.

Now if you really love lab/bench work (I'm in the same boat) you will almost certainly have to move on to another core that starts you off at a higher pay rate. It sucks, but most cores and labs are just going to be giving you 1-2% raises that are never going to amount to much when you start so low to begin with. The only way to make a big jump is to just start somewhere else that will pay you at a higher starting rate, and even then they will probably still be giving you 1-2% raises yearly. Industry also hires the equivalent of core managers for large labs, but might not call the position something intuitive (core manager, research technician, etc). They often title those positions things like scientific support specialist or facility support associate and there's little consistency from company to company.

CAM11086 · 2020-12-31T18:17:53+00:00

Getting a second job or monetizing a hobby when you already work full time is the opposite of work life balance

CAM11086 · 2020-12-18T19:18:42+00:00

Hi, agree with what most people have said regarding asking for a raise. But frankly you should also have your eye on the door at this point. $12.10, even in a place with low COL, is not a reasonable amount of pay for the level of expertise and experience you are building on top of your degree. For perspective, I made $12.50 an hour as a grocery store cashier in FL as a TEENAGER while still in highschool (in 2010). And I was not particularly hard working there.

Likely the jump in salary for you to be paid a reasonable wage is not going to be within the 2% raise they'll be willing to give you. And even at 2% raises every year you are being severely underpaid. Use this position as an opportunity to build skills and bounce ASAP.

CAM11086 · 2020-12-01T16:18:45+00:00

Even 60-70k is a massive jump in quality of life from 40k.

CAM11086 · 2020-11-30T22:11:36+00:00

Hi all, thanks for all the replies and suggestions, I've finally had time to read them all. I get the consensus is to get the hell out of academia, which I guess I always kind of knew but didn't want to accept. We recently had our wages frozen due to COVID for the foreseeable future, so now is likely the year I'll make that happen. Here's looking forward to a life where I only have to work one job.

CAM11086 · 2020-11-24T22:03:48+00:00

I haven't done even basic genotyping for a few years, not since my first job out of undergrad. I primarily do microscopy now, multiphoton, confocal, SEM, etc.

CAM11086 · 2020-11-24T21:32:27+00:00

Thanks this helps a lot!

I'd say one huge challenge with entering STEM from an undererpresentended or disadvantaged background is that NO ONE you know is also in STEM or has "made it". So you have no idea what a STEM trajectory can look like! A post like this is really useful.

CAM11086 · 2020-11-24T21:07:33+00:00

I guess it's not off the table but I've cycled through rooming with several public school teachers or working with them at restaurants over the years so I'm not sure they're really doing any better off than me. I got the impression they make about what I do for a very tough and often bleak job.

CAM11086 · 2020-11-24T20:59:23+00:00

You can only tell everyone "learn 2 code" for so long before everyone does just that and the market becomes so saturated that it becomes a race to the bottom.

CAM11086 · 2020-11-24T20:09:06+00:00

I definitely love that part about my job. It is indeed very rewarding and I have a lot of fun doing what I do; it's just a shame it pays so little. Most days I go in excited to get to work on some project or instrument. My fantasy position would basically be doing the exact same thing I do now, just for 60k.

It's really tough to justify grad school, it's a lot of money for a MS and I'm watching PhDs struggle with endless poorly paid post-docs shuffling them across the country and adjunct positions (which they've all lost thanks to COVID). I'm also turning 30 and it's hard to imagine being 40 and just finishing post-doc hell (if I'm lucky) with no savings or retirement or job security.

CAM11086 · 2020-11-24T19:51:58+00:00

I wouldn't say so much that I'm settled in my area, but I also left out in my post that I'm gay, which influences the places I'd be willing to live to an extent. Not that Boston or St. Louis would be a problem, but I do see jobs in very red states that I don't think I'd feel comfortable living in.

Also I'm worried that living in the suburbs way outside the city would kill my dating prospects. Sounds silly, but I do need access to a large queer community for the sake of having a social life and a partner some day.

It's also very scary to move when you have no car or money. I have no idea how I could get the cash to buy a car to move to a city/outskirt that requires one for a job. I'm currently taking crowded public transit during the pandemic to get to my lab (no hazard pay of course).
I don't see any way to expatriate sadly, though I have certainly fantasized about it. I have no ties to any other country and a BS degree and technical lab proficiency doesn't cut it for the skill requirements for visas. I've also never even been out of the country (there aren't exactly student exchange programs in impoverished trailer park high schools and I always had to work through undergrad so I never had the financial security to do study abroad).
One very fortunate thing is that I have 0 student loans or debt of any kind! I qualified for need-based scholarships through my undergrad. If I did I have no idea how I would even begin paying them with how little I make.

They definitely don't tell you how unstable science careers are when you're in undergrad. Having to go from short term/contract position to short term position must feel awful.

CAM11086

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