Dr. Shellie

…Alice Waters admits she doesn’t know what buffalo chicken wings are. 

(And if you don’t know what I’m talking about already, I’m afraid there’s just no way to explain why this is funny.)

In case you were curious, I thought I’d report back on the current experiment to go caffeine-free…

A recap: in undergrad, I drank the occasional coffee to stay up late and finish problem sets. In grad school, the coffee habit grew until I was drinking two double espressos a day. Tired of the wild surges in energy followed by terrible crashes, I decided to downgrade to a strict two cups of coffee a day, one in the morning and one after lunch. After a few years (and a few emergencies caused by lack of access to coffee and the subsequent failure of my brain to function for an entire day), my husband convinced me to switch to tea. Before January 3, I was drinking two cups of tea per day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.

Since the 3rd, I decided to cut out tea altogether. After one day of headaches, I managed to detox. Since then, I have not noticed any drastic changes in energy level, sleeping patterns, or stress. What I am noticing, though, is that not drinking tea keeps me from trying to "cheat." In the past, whenever I was tired or bored, I would drink a tea. Having taken the tea away from myself, I now longer have that strategy. So when I am tired, or bored, or stressed out, I have to acknowledge it, and say "Self, seems you are tired/bored/upset. What shall we do about that? Exercise? Lie down for 5 minutes? Think about what is bothering you and see if you can calm down?" I am also noticing more the fluctuations in my energy levels, and which things give me energy (talking to prospective students on the phone! They are fantastic!) and which things take it away (skipping my morning run, eating junk).

So all in all, the experiment has been very worthwhile, and even if I go back to the tea, I’ve learned something useful.

Since getting a faculty position, I have been in a position to help out a number of people with career advice. I’ve given a few talks on "how to get a faculty job" and helped several colleagues with their job applications. I am very glad to be able to do this kind of work and am glad to finally start to be a role model for younger women in science.

But it is not entirely easy for me. This last weekend, I attended a conference for undergraduate women who were considering going to graduate school. I enjoyed meeting them and hearing about their interests and plans. But when I meet younger women, I hear in their questions many of the same issues and concerns I had at their age. And though I am in an ideal position to share my experience (and maybe in so doing make theirs a little easier), it brings up some emotions I might rather forget– like feeling unsure, and unconfident, and not knowing if I was good enough or smart enough to do what I (tentatively) wanted to do. I think this will get easier the more I do this type of work– a reminder that it is not just benefitting the people I am helping, but also me.

A comment from a reader:

I am looking for a good PhD research placement for my daughter, Christa, and I am trying to educate myself through the internet. I thought that I would look for female research professors in the life sciences because I thought they might be more sympathetic to a female student in a male dominated field. My daughter will graduate in June with a B.S. in Biochemical engineering and a minor in Biology. She is unsure of where she wants to go (she has a short list). Otherwise her only guideline to me is that she would like to do ‘meaningful’ research. She is also struggling with her cover letter. I think she is too much of a perfectionist when it comes to these kind of things but all of the sites I have seen online stress the importance of this letter. She has also had difficulty in the past securing letters of recommendation from the two researchers that she has worked with in the past; both have moved back to their countries of origin and have become difficult to reach. I think letters of reccomendation should be published on line and accessable to all for all time. Perhaps a secure site for professors and researchers that universities can access with students ID #’s. I feel so helpless in my efforts to help her. What are your reccommendations and what do you look for (or hate) in a cover letter?

 It is tempting to want to do everything you can for your daughter to help her complete her applications. But I would advise you not to try and overmanage the process. A PhD is a long and challenging period of study that requires tremendous determination and focus while working toward a delayed reward. If she wants to get a PhD, she will have to find the seeds of these qualities within herself and work to develop them. The most important thing you can do is to encourage this process. Ask her about the things she likes about biology, about either her classes so far or about her undergraduate research experience. See if you can get her to talk about the things that make her enthusiastic and passionate. Give her supportive feedback, and encourage her to look at different departments and research that might be related to the areas she enjoys. If you have friends or relatives in the cities where the schools she is applying to are located, offer to give her their email or phone number if she wants to ask about life in that part of the country.

When I read cover letters or talk to prospective students, what really impresses me is when (1) they know why they want to pursue a graduate degree and (2) they explain how their experience so far has sparked their interest in a particular area and prepared them for future study. She should not worry too much about exact phrasing, as long as the main points are clear. I read many applications from foreign students whose grammar, spelling, and syntax is not perfect– what I look for is their ability to explain their motivation and experience.

Note, I am in the physical sciences and engineering, not the life sciences. But the same general considerations apply.

As to whether I am more sympathetic to female students than my male colleagues, it is very important to me to encourage the participation of women, minorities, and nontraditional students to science and engineering. I would not go so far as to admit a female student over a more qualified male student (in terms of GPA, research statement, skills, experience, statement of purpose, etc.). However, I do try and take a look an extra look at the applications from female students and make sure they are evaluated fairly and not overlooked in the shuffle. I believe several physical sciences/engineering departments have similar practices to take a "second look" at female and minority candidates to make sure that strongly qualified candidates are admitted.

Come to think of it, "stretch gently, but not to the point of pain" is not just good advice for arm rehabilitation, but also an excellent theme for the year…