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scoring bad advisors

038: Why aren’t bad research advisors held accountable?

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You’ve either heard the stories, or worse, you’ve lived them.

They’re stories of the research advisors who scream at their students in front of the whole department.

The PIs who put two or three postdocs on the same project, expecting only one to succeed.

The ‘mentor’ who makes you feel like you’re not even qualified to wash the glassware.

So why do academic institutions allow such bad behavior to continue year in, and year out?  Why aren’t bad PIs accountable?

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037: Consulting Jobs for PhDs

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Management consulting is an exciting field, but actually getting a consulting job at one of the top firms can be extremely difficult.  Some people argue that you’ll have an easier time getting into Harvard than landing a spot at McKinsey…

We talked to a postdoc-turned-consultant about how she left the bench and got a job in such a competitive field.

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036: What Do Consultants DO, Exactly?

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If you’ve worked at the bench for awhile, your only reference to the world of consulting is probably the two Bobs in the movie “Office Space.”  They’re the hatchet men who swoop into a company, fire a bunch of people, and fly back home.  But is that an accurate picture of consulting work, or a just bit of satire?

This week, we turn the tables and ask a biomedical PhD/management consultant: “What would you say you do here?”  You’ll be surprised by her response!

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034: Sci-Hub and the Publication Pirates

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Research budgets are tight, and many universities are canceling subscriptions to costly online science journals and publications.  But papers are the currency of science, and it’s impossible to stay at the top of your field when you can’t find out what your field is doing.

One solution sails between the rock and the hard-place, as scientists and trainees turn to ‘pirated’ articles posted online.

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