Spouse

[Jennifer L. Potter]

Hi all,

I have really been enjoying this thread, because I will be in the same 
situation in 1999 when my husband graduates with his MD/PhD and we need 
to find him a residency and myself a faculty position (or, post-doc #2).

I would like to share the experience of a woman here:  She received a 
position here as a tenure-track professor (in a dept where she was the 
only woman prof) but didn't have a great start-up package...she struggled 
with what she had (and noticed that others in similar positions had 
received more) and is today a full prof and quite an asset to the dept.

She said that she asked the Chair why she didn't get space, equipment, 
etc.  He replied that no one thought she would be at the institution long 
because she was "following her husband (an MD) and might not be around 
long".  The truth was just the opposite...her husband took a less than 
optimal position so *she* could take this position.  

The moral of the story might be that being up front is not always a bad 
thing, although I don't know the specifics of her interviewing process.
  
Another lesson, one which she emphasized, was to really bargain for the 
best start-up package you can get instead of being thankful for what you 
are given.