Relief, I guess...
So before going off on my great american roadtrip (pics later), I applied for jobs in a couple of places around the world.
I never had much hope for the prestigious university in England. They must have gotten dozens of applications just like mine and I don't really know anyone there that I could work with. That is to say, I do know one guy. My (still) current boss suggested that I could work with him. But that guy is in a different institute, which is not hiring at the moment. And there's another guy whose research looks kinda interesting, but I doubt he knows anything about me, so he won't be much help. See, it's not who you know that matters here, it's who knows you. So the odds were not great, but, hey, they were better than if I hadn't tried at all!
That place in Japan could be interesting. Bit far away from home, but isn't that what I wanted? Again, I know nobody at that institute and very few people at the university, but, hey, why not give it a try? It's Applied Math. Not exactly the kind of Math or the kind of applications I'm used to, but the whole point is to try something new, right?
The group in France, as far as I can tell, seems to be mostly mathematicians trying to get into Quantum Information, so I think I might actually have a chance there. I think, with my experience at the Quantum Cernter, I might be exactly the person they are looking for. You know, unless I'm not.
And finally, there's Gdańsk. The position at the Institute of Informatics seemed like somehting more-or-less certain to fall back on if all else should fail. At this point I want to go somewhere else. To see the world. To experience something different. I'm not gonna get that in Gdańsk. But it is a safe place to wait until something better turns up.
The problem was that weeks were passing and I wasn't getting any replies. Oh, they'd got my CV, sure. And they assured me they'd email me as soon as they made some kind of decision. But I checked my mail whenever I could and there was nothing there. After returning home, back to reality, I began to worry so much I could hardly focus on anything else. What if I don't get a job? Any job? After all, it was September already, and, at least in some places, term starts in October. Inctuding Gdańsk. What if even Gdańsk doesn't want me? What if I'm just not as good as I thought I was?
But at last, this morning in fact, I got a phonecall. And it turns out that, at the very least, I am not doomed after all. I got the job at Gdańsk. It's not the job I wanted the most, but it's a job. If I don't get any news from France, Japan or England by October 1st, I guess I'm staying here for now.
Still kinda holding out for France, though. The deadline for applying there is not until next week. Of course, they can't tell me I've got the job before then, but maybe...
We'll see.
I never had much hope for the prestigious university in England. They must have gotten dozens of applications just like mine and I don't really know anyone there that I could work with. That is to say, I do know one guy. My (still) current boss suggested that I could work with him. But that guy is in a different institute, which is not hiring at the moment. And there's another guy whose research looks kinda interesting, but I doubt he knows anything about me, so he won't be much help. See, it's not who you know that matters here, it's who knows you. So the odds were not great, but, hey, they were better than if I hadn't tried at all!
That place in Japan could be interesting. Bit far away from home, but isn't that what I wanted? Again, I know nobody at that institute and very few people at the university, but, hey, why not give it a try? It's Applied Math. Not exactly the kind of Math or the kind of applications I'm used to, but the whole point is to try something new, right?
The group in France, as far as I can tell, seems to be mostly mathematicians trying to get into Quantum Information, so I think I might actually have a chance there. I think, with my experience at the Quantum Cernter, I might be exactly the person they are looking for. You know, unless I'm not.
And finally, there's Gdańsk. The position at the Institute of Informatics seemed like somehting more-or-less certain to fall back on if all else should fail. At this point I want to go somewhere else. To see the world. To experience something different. I'm not gonna get that in Gdańsk. But it is a safe place to wait until something better turns up.
The problem was that weeks were passing and I wasn't getting any replies. Oh, they'd got my CV, sure. And they assured me they'd email me as soon as they made some kind of decision. But I checked my mail whenever I could and there was nothing there. After returning home, back to reality, I began to worry so much I could hardly focus on anything else. What if I don't get a job? Any job? After all, it was September already, and, at least in some places, term starts in October. Inctuding Gdańsk. What if even Gdańsk doesn't want me? What if I'm just not as good as I thought I was?
But at last, this morning in fact, I got a phonecall. And it turns out that, at the very least, I am not doomed after all. I got the job at Gdańsk. It's not the job I wanted the most, but it's a job. If I don't get any news from France, Japan or England by October 1st, I guess I'm staying here for now.
Still kinda holding out for France, though. The deadline for applying there is not until next week. Of course, they can't tell me I've got the job before then, but maybe...
We'll see.