Welcome to the latest in my series of quarterly updates on my life as a postdoc and university spin-out company co-founder. For previous monthly updates see here: Beyond the PhD Series.
This update you join me from Norway, where I’m currently on a research visit. Yes, you read that right. After saying that I wanted to get some experience working and living abroad, I’ve finally done it!
In this post I’ll be sharing more details and touching on what else has been happening over the past three months.
Work
Postdoc job
After going to several conferences in the first quarter of 2024, I’ve not felt as productive in the second quarter. Although I’ve been busy it doesn’t seem to have resulted in many outputs. From April to June I was second author on a paper submitted for a special issue of a journal.
Other than that I recently had to review proofs for a paper getting published as a book chapter. This was work I presented earlier in the year at a conference.
I think it’s fine to go through these periods. Firstly, because it’s not possible to always be cranking out finished articles. There has to be periods of time where you have to get on with the background research which will eventually result in papers and going to conferences. And secondly, there will also be times where you either have to catch up on admin or rest.
Grants
The only grant I submitted over this period was to enable me to go on a research visit. TAILOR is a Europe-wide programme to connect AI researchers. Their Connectivity Fund had been open to applications for several years, but I’d never made it a priority to apply.
That was until the final deadline was looming and I realised that I’d been in my current role for several years but had never truly made the most of the freedom it offered.
With a supportive boss I was able to make an application to go back to Tromsø: the city in Norway I had visited for the Northern Lights Deep Learning conference back in January (last Beyond the PhD post covers it). And thankfully the application was successful!
Norway!
I’m currently in Norway, and have been here for the previous five and a half weeks. Sadly I’m going to leave in just a few days, having really enjoyed my time here. The people in the group have been really welcoming, the work has been rewarding, and I’ve enjoyed having such nice nature to explore nearby.
Frustratingly I hurt my ankle in the first week, which limited my exploring for the first week or two. Funnily enough it was only in the last Beyond the PhD post that I said I’d specifically been concentrating on building the flexibility and strength in my feet/ankles. I’m glad I had been doing this because I expect that it helped limit the damage. Thankfully by now it is pretty much back to normal.
I’ve probably been working harder than normal during the stay, likely because:
- I don’t have to commute as far or deal with some of the life admin from home (there is a dishwasher here which is a novelty for me!)
- The trip is only six weeks in total, and I wanted to try and achieve the aims of the project in that period as much as possible. I’d say it’s been a partial success.
Outside of work, I’ve been busy exploring the local area. In fact I’ve even gone on a few hikes on week days after work! This is firstly thanks to the fact that the mountains are so close by and secondly that, given we’re so far north in the artic circle (in the summer) it is light all of the time! The it-doesn’t-get-dark-here point has taken some getting used to. It has though meant getting to enjoy the midnight sun, including watching the Midnight Sun Marathon take place.
I’m so glad I ensured I applied for the funding and have managed to spend a bit of time working abroad.
Interested in a separate post about the research visit? Applications, deciding what to do, where to go, and my advice etc? Let me know.
Tenure-track (lecturer / assistant professor) applications
Another position has been advertised in the department I work at in Bristol. Again I’ve not applied for it. I do want to go for them eventually but:
- It feels like a lot to take on at the moment whilst stuff with the spin-out company ramps up – more on that in a moment
- I haven’t wanted to limit my options for working abroad – starting on the tenure-track pathway seems quite serious and not something I’d want to tie myself to until I’m sure I’m happy with the decision. Of course there is no guarantee that I’d even get any of these positions, so in the meantime I’ve been trying to build my experience and credentials.
Spin-out company
The big news here is that we’ve had a bit of a restructuring within the management of the company and I have now moved to the CEO roll.
Certainly being a CEO of a tech company, albeit a small one, wasn’t something I was expecting and even typing this it still is taking a bit of time to get used to. This means a bit more responsibility and additional tasks that I’m in charge of.
Having said that, it feels like quite a natural progression since the company was formed around my own research and I went through an intensive programme to understand the market etc which are all central to the CEO role.
Separately to this, we’ve submitted a few grant applications and expanded the team since the last update.
Got any questions about running a tech company? Let me know.
The Savvy Scientist website
New posts
Two new posts since the last Beyond the PhD post:
- Minor Corrections: How To Make Them and Succeed With Your PhD Thesis
- What is a Postdoc? Key Insights for Aspiring Academics
Website traffic
Since the last update we saw a bit of a slump in traffic. Throughout the year it does go in cycles, however I’d still hope that the website would be putting on growth because of new content.
As usual I’ve been slacking on that crucial part which I don’t think helps. We’re up compared to last year (dashed line, ignore the dashed stuff before January) which is positive.
Time off
Wisdom teeth removal
I won’t go into much detail but back in April I had three wisdom teeth removed in one go. Thankfully it was under general anaesthetic so I don’t notice anything during the operation and it all went fine. It did feel a bit uncomfortable afterwards but it made me:
- Feel very lucky to not usually live with physical pain and discomfort.
- Appreciate food and in particular texture. For the first week or two everything I ate was blended to make it easier to eat. Blended chilli and rice is surprisingly good, blended pasta: less so, and it certainly won’t feature in my tasty meals series!
Holiday
The week after having my wisdom teeth removed I went on a holiday to Portugal. It was a lovely break, but not without teeth issues. In fact, I had to head across the border to Spain to visit a dentist, though somehow the visit (which included an X-Ray) was free of charge!
Media I’ve consumed
Books
Ultra-Processed People: The Science Behind Food That Isn’t Food – I didn’t agree with chunks of this book. However, generally it put forward a lot of persuasive arguments that ultra processed food is a big, and very recent, global issue and phenomenon. Overall I’d recommend the book.
The Man Who Cycled the World . I quite fancy the idea of cycling a long distance, but not where you’re trying to go as fast as possible and have no time to slow down and enjoy it. A few years ago I saw a short film (Freedom Seat, linked below) about a guy who had a tandem bike and invited random people to cycle with him. To me that sounds like a fun and interesting adventure. The film is also worth a watch:
Personal finances
Income
Recently I’ve been working 4 days per week at the university, providing take-home pay of £2273.61 in June.
During the spin-out company restructuring described above I’ve not been claiming a salary, though will do again shortly.
Savings
Over the three months since the end of March my savings went up by £2517.53. This is slightly less than normal, Perhaps in part because:
- All of this quarter I’ve been earning less – no income from the spin-out company work.
- I increased my charity donations towards the end of the last quarter – which is now taking effect
- I had to pay upfront all of the costs for this research visit and I’m owed this money back. I’ve guesstimated how much it’ll come to but I’ve not properly added it up. By next update I should be getting reimbursed – I hope!
ISA
For the first time ever, last tax year (ending 5th April 2024) I filled up my entire £20,000 annual ISA allowance. Most of this went into a cash ISA paying 5.25% interest for two years. I’m proud to have managed to put so much into my ISA in one year. And also that not long into the current tax year I was able to use up half of my 2024/25 allowance. This year I’m focussing on stocks and shares and hope to fill up the full £20k allowance by the end of this calendar year.
Summary & plans
For sure my biggest news in this quarter was that I applied for some funding for a research trip and was successful. I’m so happy to have finally done one and spent some time in Norway, it has been a great experience.
Looking forward to the next quarter I want to submit the work from this research visit to a conference and get into some work for another grant I was awarded last quarter. I’ll likely also have to drop my hours at the university as the spin-out company requires more of my attention.
Make sure to check out previous posts in the Beyond the PhD Series and you can subscribe below to be notified of new content:
