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What does the average postdoc make in STEM? Something like 40k. Wanting a family and having to be a slave to the job for pennies on the dollar was a big disense

What does the average postdoc make in STEM? Something like 40k. Wanting a family and having to be a slave to the job for pennies on the dollar was a big disensentive for me. Also, I would never move away from Canada and I feel le there were even fewer opportunities here.

robotresearcher 11y ago
Postdoc is a temporary job. It's a segue between training and an independent position. The pay rate is not very important because you're not supposed to do it for more than two or three years. Then it's up or out.
- whyenot 11y ago
  In many science disciplines it's not uncommon for someone to do two or ever three postdocs while looking for more permanent employment. The underlying cause is the same reason people settle for the low pay and poor job security of being an adjunct: there isn't much else you can do, just work hard, hope, and wait. As the article mentions, even if you do grab the brass ring, a lot of your time and energy ends of being spent on writing grants and management. My first job out of college was working for an ecologist. Her entire NSF grant was $70k over 5 years. Out of that she had to pay my room and board at a remote field location as well as my salary. There was almost nothing left over for equipment and supplies. It was always a question whether the money would come through to allow her to continue doing her research.
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