The decline of Invertebrate Zoology

[Matthew Lee]

Dear Annelidans	

 The loss of marine invertebrate courses is symptomatic of the situation 
today.

I developed my interest in the diversity of marine life as a small boy 
rumaging around in rock pools.  When I got to university (Wales, Bangor) and 
took the course in "Invertebrate Form and Function" it confirmed that I had 
made the right decision in choosing to study marine biology.  Since then I 
have completed a PhD and spent six years in Chile studying meiofauna on the 
coast of the Atacama desert.  All of this I have thoroughly enjoyed. Last 
year, for reasons more personal than professional, I took the decision to 
return to the UK.  Since then I have been unemployed.  Each day I get emails 
from jobs.ac.uk, and depressing reading they make.  If I was into 
biotechnology and genetics I would be quids in, but I'm not.  Few jobs require 
the skills I have, fewer still are post-docs.  It has been a frustrating 12 
months and if I don't find a job soon I'm going to have to seriously consider 
a career change.  

Not because I want to, because I don't, but because I have to.
 Biotechnology has hijacked the government sponsored research agenda.  
Taxonomy and ecology would appear to be insufficiently lucrative.


Matt
-- 

Dr. Matthew R. Lee.
11 Briar Drive,
Heswall,
Wirral,
Merseyside.
CH60 5RW
United Kingdom

leemr at btopenworld.com


-- ANNELIDA LIST
   Discuss  =  <annelida at net.bio.net> = talk to all members
   Server =  <biosci-server at net.bio.net> = un/subscribes
   Archives  = http://www.bio.net/hypermail/annelida/
   Resources = http://www.annelida.net/
--