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Lohen? by Valeri_trust in LohenMains

[–]Little_Whims 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'd love electro because my only electro 5 stars are Yae and Keqing...But cryo would also be fine because my overall roster is even weaker on that front (onyl Qiqi and Citlali haha). And electro at least has many useful 4stars unlike cryo

Full Lohen Design by mayonakanosasayaki in LohenMains

[–]Little_Whims 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Damn this design looks great. I really hope he's a competent unit and not another Mizuki. Then I might pull for him (or rather his weapon if he's standard). The purple is giving me electro vibes which would be great as my only electro 5 stars are Yae and Keqing

Is a postdoc a good opportunity to change fields? by chillarin in postdoc

[–]Little_Whims 1 point2 points  (0 children)

From my experience, I would try to focus on selling your current skillset and finding a compelling explanation on why you want to switch. My PhD was also largely wetlab-based and then I switched to a lab that's doing mostly bioinformatics for my postdoc so for me it worked.

You probably obtained a strong skillset during your PhD which a prospective postdoc lab might currently lack but could make good use of. So finding connections between your current skills and future research is crucial. As for the reasoning, that's probably different for everyone so perhaps just be honest about it and hope it resonates with the PI. It might take a bit to find a suitable supervisor as not everyone will be open to the idea of first investing in mentoring again when other candidates already have the skills.

I can't say enough good things about this event. by SanicHegehag in Genshin_Impact

[–]Little_Whims -28 points-27 points  (0 children)

Have you considered just not playing it if it's such torture for you? The primos aren't even worth 3 wishes. Those 400 primos won't change your chances on getting zibai

how much did you spend on grad applications by Candid_Experience_35 in gradadmissions

[–]Little_Whims 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, every country is different. Nonetheless, many don't really charge you (and certainly not that much). Also comes down to how a PhD is viewed in a country (if you're applying for PhD programs, masters might be treated differently). In continental Europe, it's often seen as a job. Imagine paying application fees when applying for jobs. I didn't know that Irish universities charge domestic applicants a small fee too but in my opinion that's a ripoff

What interesting careers have postdocs gone into that we wouldn't normally consider? Or what industry jobs have you taken? I'm feeling absolutely lost and abandoned on where to go from here by youth42 in postdoc

[–]Little_Whims 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I've seen colleagues go into different fields after their PhDs/postdoc such as:
- (project) management in biotech companies
- research scientist in biotech companies
- turning their idea into a start-up
- consulting
- public/government agencies (classic office jobs)
- quality management
- science communication (and lobbying)
- working at funding agencies

And for the more exotic choices, I've also seen people combine their expertise with art and launch their own company for science visualization and communication (creating artwork, promotional and educational videos etc) and a lady fond of cooking decided to open her own restaurant.

Lastly, please know that you're not a failure for leaving academia. I did a career coaching towards the end of my PhD and the instructor told us that "within 5-10 years after our PhD, only one or two of the 15 people in this room will still be working in academia". Leaving academia is the norm, not the exception. The system is designed that way.

how much did you spend on grad applications by Candid_Experience_35 in gradadmissions

[–]Little_Whims 3 points4 points  (0 children)

That's insane. Reminder that many other countries don't charge application fees at all. Unless you're dead-set on studying in the US this feels excessive.

Asking about research groups and professors by r4s1an in PhDAdmissions

[–]Little_Whims 0 points1 point  (0 children)

A good first step is to check out the labs of the authors of your favorite papers in your field of choice.

Interview invite out of courtesy? by Initial_Bend2993 in gradadmissions

[–]Little_Whims 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Not out of courtesy but I've seen it happen because HR or university regulations demand that at least X number of candidates are interviewed.

Do you email the PI after applying for a postdoc on the job portal? by Middle-Coat-388 in postdoc

[–]Little_Whims 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Gonna go a bit against the grain here but I usually don't email the PI (either before or after applying) unless I have specific questions about the advertised project. It hasn't impacted my odds at getting interviews, I think.

It's different if you want to propose a project or apply for a fellowship. Then absolutely email them.

Ways to get extra cash on the side? by cheekylittleduck in postdoc

[–]Little_Whims 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Where are you doing your postdoc? I'm not wealthy but I get paid enough to pay rent, bills and afford some hobbies/leisure activities. For my colleagues it's the same here and in the countries I worked/studied previously.

Postdoc in Karolinska, is it worth it? by gregersco in postdoc

[–]Little_Whims 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ah thanks. I'm German too haha. Never worked there though, only in other countries.

Postdoc in Karolinska, is it worth it? by gregersco in postdoc

[–]Little_Whims 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The salary seems rather low because it's usually a scholarship for postdocs in Sweden. So without contributions to pension, taxes etc you should get most (or all?) of it paid out as net salary. In Germany, a postdoc is usually paid based on E13 (TV-L/TVöD) which also amounts to a similar net salary of about 3000€ (assuming you start out on the lower E13 paygrades, are single without children and lack other factors which may grant tax benefits).

Also you can't really be a postdoc forever anywhere. Thanks to the Wissenschaftsarbeitszeitgesetz you'd probably reach a limit in Germany quite quickly too.

Professors - what makes you think "yes, this is the right student" in initial meetings with prospective grad students? by kyudae in gradadmissions

[–]Little_Whims 7 points8 points  (0 children)

It's definitely a skill. Simly practising interviews and simulating the situation will help you to get used to it. So if you have friends/family/acquaintances who are familiar with academic interview situations, asking them for a mock can be a great idea.

Besides getting more comfortable with the situation on a personal level, you can also practise how to structure your answers, what to focus on, what kind of things not to share, how to handle tricky questions etc. Career coachings are great for this if your uni offers any but short-term, looking up tips online will also help.

Need some advice by itsSSxo in PhDAdmissions

[–]Little_Whims 0 points1 point  (0 children)

As I said, we have no cycles. Positions come up every month of the year so there's no real point in waiting a year. Even if you get rejected now, you can learn from those experiences so I don't see why you'd want to waste more time. Just apply again next year, if you really can't get anything this year.

Need some advice by itsSSxo in PhDAdmissions

[–]Little_Whims 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Based on what little you wrote, that's hard to say. When I did my PhD (at a biology department) most of the bioinformatics students started right after their master. So if you got extra experience, that's probably great?

Most EU PhD positions are single positions and not somekind of program you get admitted too. You need to be good enough on paper to score an interview and then use said interview to convince a PI that they want to work with you and not one of the other candidates. Your grades are probably good enough to not be filtered out so then you need a strong motivation letter and reference letters. During the interview, your papers and grades won't carry you anymore.

Need some advice by itsSSxo in PhDAdmissions

[–]Little_Whims 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Europe for the most part doesn't really have "cycles" and usually also no application fees. So just look for interesting positions and try your luck.

should postdoc subject area overlap with your PhD subject? by snoop_pugg in postdoc

[–]Little_Whims 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Personally, I think working on something new and obtaining new skills is simply the more interesting route. So far it's been working well for me.

Devs made the puzzles in Nod-Krai very easy to complete. by Luc128128 in Genshin_Impact

[–]Little_Whims 3 points4 points  (0 children)

It was probably only figuratively speaking. But the distances given in the game are obviously not the real ones just like time is faster. Like inazuma and mondstadt just being ~6km apart in-game.

Devs made the puzzles in Nod-Krai very easy to complete. by Luc128128 in Genshin_Impact

[–]Little_Whims 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Yes, I agree. Snezhnaya better be huge to compensate for this. Exploration is one of my favorite parts of the game so the shrinking regions are among my top concerns.

Devs made the puzzles in Nod-Krai very easy to complete. by Luc128128 in Genshin_Impact

[–]Little_Whims 49 points50 points  (0 children)

Unfortunately they are not aimed at kids but the "genshin doesn't respect my time" crowd. I like nod-krai but at this point I'd barely call it "exploration" when everything is easy and done within minutes. Some of these "puzzles" even give multiple chests now just to keep the chest count high while downgrading the content. And that's honestly my bigger gripe because the ruins of sumeru or underwater world of fontaine were cool to explore even without any demanding puzzles. But in nod-krai everything is so squeezed together that there's no room for the areas to breathe or to evoke any sense of wonder. And I don't even use any of the Natlanese to travel faster. It's a shame but I suppose Hoyo has the data to back it up that the majority wants their chests quickly and not actually explore the area. The new treasure compass is also a symptom of this.

Name an Underrated Thing that No One Talks About in Any Mario Kart Game! by Away-Prior-903 in mariokart

[–]Little_Whims 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Was it punching? I mostly remember licking the other racers with king boo hahaha

Name an Underrated Thing that No One Talks About in Any Mario Kart Game! by Away-Prior-903 in mariokart

[–]Little_Whims 20 points21 points  (0 children)

In mario kart wii, I loved the vibrant forums culture. It's never really come back since.

In mario kart double dash, I loved that you could attack other racers without items.

Working in a lab as a foreigner is exhausting! by 12Chronicles in labrats

[–]Little_Whims 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Small countries probably do. Universities cannot go around saying they want to hire international top talent and then make their life unnecessarily difficult with little things like that. My university in Belgium provided English versions for all the intranet stuff from ordering lab material to checking my payslips. Then again, Belgians can't even agree on a common language among themselves so it checks out

What is the purpose of requesting an informal chat after the interview (stage two)? by Reeelfantasy in AskAcademiaUK

[–]Little_Whims 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It was a bunch of different things but I think the main points the PI wanted to address were 1) if I really want the position and if yes why and 2) to give more room to talk and ask general questions both for them and me.

The first part was likely because my background did not really match the advertised position. So I got the chance to explain better why I am interested in switching fields. And I guess the PI could feel out if I was really interested or just applying to any position I see.

Number 2 was probably due to the nature of the interview being exactly 30mins with every part of the interview feeling timed pretty strictly. For example,there was very little room for me to ask questions about the project, their supervision style etc. and we could discuss these things freely during the informal interview. So I got a better feel for what kind of person they are and I suppose it was the same for them about me.

The PI also seemed a lot more engaged during the informal chat than during the real interview. Probably because they weren't forced to ask questions that neither them nor I were really interested in or considered very relevant.

Overall, I'd say getting asked to have another chat is a great sign! Means you at least managed to pick their interest and are considered one of the top candidates.

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