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> Dismiss its wage problems at your own peril. It's far worse than this. In my field, even in industry I have had far more lucrative offers from quantitative h
by arcanus 10y ago
> Dismiss its wage problems at your own peril.
It's far worse than this. In my field, even in industry I have had far more lucrative offers from quantitative hedge funds than any industrial research labor. Let alone staying in academia, where it literally starts to become a factor of four (or more) difference in salary between a postdoc and finance.
The only reason I did not bite is because I am fortunate enough to have no college debt even after undergrad and phd. Most are not in a position to be so picky.
- jostmey 10y agoDon't count on your research job in industry remaining stable if it can be outsourced to a university lab. The ceiling on your pay is that of a postdoc's plus university overhead.
- arcanus 10y ago> if it can be outsourced to a university lab Thankfully, my work is sufficiently specialized and my background is strong enough I am not easily replaced. However, like many on HN I'm not representative of the general population and am certainly in a fortunate position. I am on a 'tenure track' in an organization where proprietary work and intellectual property I develop is legitimately valued. But broadly, I agree. And I've seen some pretty horrific results along the lines you alluded occur to several of my colleagues.