Lately I have seen several postings from people concerned with managing
to have a scientific career and a family as well. I want to put in my two
cents, as well as some words of encouragement to young women who want to
pursue scientific interests and have children too. _Yes_ it is possible to
be a scientist and a mother at the same time. Children are precious and
wonderful, and if you want to raise them and pursue a scientific career at
the same time, go right ahead! I am 33 and have two sons, ages three years
and eight months, both of whom were born during my stint as a Postdoc. I
recently accepted a staff appointment in Oncology Research at a large
hospital, which also carries an academic appointment of Assistant
Professor. I am very happy (and very busy!) in both my professional and
personal life.
I too felt the dilemma of trying to decide when was the "right" time to
have kids. Unfortunately by the time you are truly established in your
field, you may be too old to have children. I felt that having kids during
my Postdoc was a good compromise. However, I ended up working at the same
Postdoc for five years (only in part because of the children, I was waiting
for my husband to finish grad school). I was very fortunate also that my
mentor during that time was a mother of small children, as well as a
scientist.
Here are some thoughts for those of you who are travelling this path:
¥ don't plan on having any time-consuming hobbies at this point, you will
be very very busy
¥ you may have better luck, and a slower pace at a smaller institution,
rather than a prestigious University. However, my mentor had a baby while a
Postdoc at MIT, so it can be done
¥ of course, your husband is a 90's kind of guy and will do his share of
laundry, dishes, diapering, etc. It also helps if he has a good income,
because they don't pay Postdocs much
¥ the status quo for Postdocs has been that they should work long hours for
low pay, all for the love of science. Baloney! I say, and we should work
to change this. The key to a happy life is balance, and fortunately more
and more people are recognizing this. If you are well organized and plan
efficiently you can get a lot of research done in 40 hours a week. The
flexible schedule of a Postdoc may also allow you to spend less on daycare,
if you can trade off with your husband.
¥ choose your mentor carefully. Don't bother to mention that you are
planning a pregnancy in the near future, it is perfectly within your rights
to have a baby and a job too. Don't stereotype, but it is possible that a
middle aged man whose wife stays home, or a childless, single woman will be
less sympathetic to your needs as a working mother. Ask other people in
the lab questions about their families and work to get a feeling for the
general attitude
¥ consider what techniques you will be using in the lab - will you feel
comfortable working with radioactivity while pregnant? Can you time things
to minimize your exposure? Also check MSDS sheets on any chemicals you may
be using and exercise caution with anything mutagenic or teratogenic. I
worked with small amounts of 32P, and with ethidium bromide during my
pregnancies, and made sure I was careful handling them
¥ make friends with other mother/scientists. During my lab experience I
have known Grad Students with kids, technicians with kids, MD's and PhD's
with kids, and it is great to get together and talk about all the problems
and rewards of juggling career and family.
