I moved into industry this year right after finishing PhD. I was a bit of an overzealous student in grad school - I published often, was very active in research circles and participated in several conferences and workshops. The expectation from academic folks that knew me was that I would continue in academic research. Needless to say there was blowback when I moved to the industry - people I knew closely in academia (including my advisor) were shocked and have reduced contact or have been very cold in their communications with me. Also, there is the emotional turmoil of leaving my field of study and going off into a completely different career. Ex-academics, how long did it take you to get used to your new career and forget about your academic work? I am actually thinking of seeing a therapist about this.
Almost immediately...doing work just as interesting for way more money and respect really helped. My academic colleagues were also pretty narcissistic.
Spot on with the narcissism bit
I'm in a very similar situation OP, I am just about to leave likely by 2020. I feel bad leaving as I know I could keep submitting and publishing papers in top journals. I'm also working 80 plus hours a week, haven't taken a single weekend off for over a year and only a handful since I started PhD. I'm totally obsessed with publications and getting research done. I used to be very sporty and I quit that, I've lost weight as I am so focused on work I forget to eat and often end up finishing work at a ridiculously late hour and realising I'm starving hungry. But having said that I love what I do and wouldn't consider myself unhappy or stressed. Worried about leaving and losing my purpose / drive in life. My main gripe is the time I waste writing and revising papers, huge time sink and I dont like doing it, that and TC š¤·āāļø
Yeah I understand that. I feel a huge loss of purpose. Basically a big void that will likely take a while to fill. What makes you want to leave?
Edited my answer OP, sorry redrafted it, I really am an academic š
You don't need to forget your academic work. You can use it to your advantage. Academic skills can be useful in the industry too.
Count your blessings and enjoy your new life. Leaving academia is like leaving a cult. Read about people who left cults and youāll see a lot of parallels with your own experience currently and the way forward in terms of healing.
Aren't tech companies are more like cults?
^ this is the feeling I get. Tech companies are way more cultish. Companies canāt survive if employees start to actually think and disagree with the so called company mission š Academia has certain cult like features but it actually values and encourages intellectual freedom.
Not from a technical background, but academia is an insular place in general and after working for a few years in industry I feel like I left a cult. Considering that grad students are raw material to further your advisorsā careers, not surprising that you got the cold shoulder. Thereās a hugely active ex-academic Twitter community... As for getting used to it ... that happened after I started getting regular paychecks...and being able to establish a boundary between work and everything else.
āConsidering that grad students are raw material to further your advisorsā careersā - truth to power.
TLDR: You sounds like someone who is driven by genuine passion. You need to figure out what get you going about the roles in industry. Rest will fall in place with time. Itās takes genuine interest and commitment to succeed in academia. Sounds like you are one of those people who find fulfillment through passionate hard work. I get it. I joined industry after PhD. I loved research (still do), but it took me some soul searching to figure out what mattered to me and how I can find fulfillment in a career in industry. I realized that designing algorithms for products that have an impact is very fulfilling for me. The challenges are a bit different from academia ā problems are not as hard (technically) but building viable products is a whole different ballgame. Also, you need a large team to build such solutions and that teaches you people management. I enjoy these challenges. So, my goals have changed and I find fulfillment in achieving these new goals. Also, PhD taught me to think systematically and rigorously about complex problems; not to mention loads of resilience. These skills have proven invaluable. As for the change in the relationship with former academic colleagues, their reaction is natural but more mature folks should be supportive. Itās important for you to fully acknowledge that your goals have changed ā and to be clear (as mentioned above) what those goals are. You would also need to build a new circle of people with similar goals. Your academic circle will always be a part of your world, but not as involved and aligned with your world as before. Hope this helps. Feel free to DM me if youād like to talk more.
Your TC is higher. Much higher. Be happy. I am now earning as much as my PhD advisor. I'm half his age. Although I will admit I miss talking about my work.
I miss the depth of thinking but I love to think in terms of making things work in the real world instead of just in a theoretical framework. I definitely not miss being having little money. I know people in academia will judge me for switching to software development, but later on they are probably going to ask me for sponsorship lol, and they are going to be really friendly. I think it's really refreshing to work outside of academia. They are years behind in people management. The density of assholes in academia is unhealthy. They still need to clean a lot of shit from under the rug.
āDensity of assholes in academia is unhealthyā ā itās borderline epidemic. There was recent article published in Nature on how the rates of depression and anxiety disorders among grad students and postdocs is almost 3 times that of the general population. Definitely field dependent though - way worse in life sciences and humanities than CS and engineering
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You should not feel bad about it at all. If they would value your work they would pay you more than an Uber driver. You can't even feed your family with this. BTW you gave your best years to academia already. Most nobel contributions happen before the age of 35.
Umm most noble before 35? Not sure what you mean by that.
Cloudfare meant Nobel.