I have just finished 9 years of university... AMA

whats your advice for high school students going into cs BSc? also what do you wish you did different during your undergrad?

if you wanted to, could you not have stayed on at the university doing research? Or is it not always that simple? surely the more the merrier for research I'd imagine? (that's my goal for after I do my masters)

Pipe dream for the majority of PhD holders. There is not the money nor inclination.

that's a shame! I didn't realise it was that difficult to get into a position like that, I assumed anyone with a PhD could go straight into it if they wanted to

Very, very difficult

I am 3 years post-PhD and still don't have a permanent contract

oh wow!😔 would you say the changes are higher if you stay at the same uni since undergrad? Or does that not matter?

that's a shame! I didn't realise it was that difficult to get into a position like that, I assumed anyone with a PhD could go straight into it if they wanted to

I think a lot of people outside of PhD and academia don't understand what's happening behind the scenes and they make assumptions.

I am unfortunately one of those people. It's a career im hoping to persue, I wasn't aware it was that difficult, but it is not something we are told while at uni (at least for me). we just get told you can have the option to stay on and work alongside the lecturers

University has given false hopes to most people. I hoenstly thought that most people came to uni to become rich when I started in 2012. Turns out the majority of people live from payslip to payslip for the rest of their lives.

that's a real shame!! hopefully something comes up for us All! what is it unis look for in a lecturer?

There are performance metrics called the H-index which measures the number of publications you have and how frequently these publications are cited. Your H-index should be considerably higher than others that want the position. They also want someone with a wide range of academic contacts and people who have collaborated with other universities.

yeah that sounds really difficult! especially if you're just starting out! how are you supposed to make lots of frequent publications? I do wonder a lot what hasn't been discovered yet and if I'd be able to make such a contribution, but I suppose I'll never know until I try

whats the most interesting topic you studied during those 9 years

So what happened then?

It's all boring, all theoretical.

It's all boring, all theoretical.