Hi Mariah,

Well, there are a couple of negative aspects to my job (although they are far outweighed by the positive ones!). One is sometimes there are people (usually at meetings) that I have to interact with that I don't like. Of course, that is likely to happen in any job. Usually, I try to make sure these aren't people that I'll be working with routinely.

Another aspect is meetings. Not scientific conferences, which are generally enjoyable, but group meetings which are sometimes inefficient and interrupt other things I might want to be working on. These are usually necessary and not too often disagreeable, but every so often one really drags on and the discussion is about something that I'm only marginally involved with.

For my job I write scientific papers as well as proposals asking agencies like NASA and NSF for money to fund my research. While writing these papers and proposals is not bad (and sometimes enjoyable - although getting started is sometimes tough), it can be tough to read a referee report criticizing my scientific paper or the explanation for why my proposal wasn't selected for funding. Usually these criticisms and rejections are worded such that it isn't too upsetting, but there are occasions where the reports are written in a rude manner (I'm mostly thinking of responses to scientific papers). It helps to have a thick skin, confidence in the quality of your work, and not to take things too personally.

There are probably other aspects, but those are the ones that I can think of off the top of my head.

Best,

Christina

Hi Mariah,

I enjoy my work and have had the opportunity to do a lot of really interesting research. Unfortunately, all professions, including science and engineering, have negative aspects to them.

Even though a lot of progress has been made in the area of equal opportunities for women in the last 50 years, I have encountered attitudes that could be considered sexist. Physics is still a male-dominated field, even though increasing numbers of women are earning Ph.D.s in this area. Although you rarely hear anyone make obvious sexist statements, there have been times when I wondered if I would have been treated differently if I were a man. However, it can be very difficult to separate sexist treatment from the strange politics of science. In Christina's response to your question, she mentioned that it can be difficult not to take criticism of your work personally. Unfortunately, scientists invest a lot of time in their work, which causes some of them to feel very hurt and angry when someone criticizes their work or shows data that disagrees with their results. In the past, I have had some uncomfortable interactions with older, male scientists who were offended when I presented data that did not support theories they had been developing for years. It was really hard to tell in these situations if they made disrespectful comments to me just because they took the disagreement between our work personally, or if sexism also played a role in their response. Fortunately, when I have been in these situations, my supervisor and my collaborators helped defend my work. Surrounding yourself with supportive co-workers can help counteract this kind of negativity.

Kris