New Colleagues

Leaving academia is a big adjustment. There’s a lot to think about. This post isn’t designed to add to your workload, mental or otherwise.

Once you leave academia and you’re working wherever you are working, your colleagues may be different. You may be lucky enough (or unlucky depending on how you look at it) to continue to work with other doctors or others with advanced degrees. More than likely, your colleagues in your new industry won’t have advanced degrees. They may not have degrees at all. There will be varying interest in higher education beyond high school. Some of your colleagues may want to pick your brain about whether a master’s degree is worth it and others will have no desire for any additional education.

More than likely, you will have colleagues who are younger than you who may be in senior-level positions. You will have younger colleagues who have more work experience than you do and so may be farther along in their career than you. This can be hard when you are used to being in higher-tiered positions within the academic hierarchy (especially if you were tenured or tenure-track faculty). You may be tempted to fall into academic regret, wishing you could be farther along given how many years you have put towards career advancement. Because academia has so many unspoken rules and practices, you may start to feel slightly judged.

I get it. But don’t do that to yourself.

People’s opinions of you and your previous life as an academic are not important, especially if they are never verbalized. People are not as judgmental as you think. Don’t project your own insecurities onto others.

Your time as an academic is not wasted time. It’s valuable and gives you a different perspective and approach to your new work. It gives you something unique to offer an employer or your own business if you choose entrepreneurship. Working outside of academia can be the fulfilment of your academic work, a way for your research to come to life. Or it can be a way to use your skills to help the most people. I have learned so much from my non-academic colleagues. Isn’t that why we pursued academia to begin with, because we love to learn? Building expertise in any subject is a fascinating process that takes years of practice and dedication. I admire anyone who can achieve that, whether the knowledge is in chess, cars, literature, or relationships.