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[scholarysomething]

Maybe I've been reading too much on here, but as I'm searching a TT job and about to have my first interview, I read and I see posts on "sabotage," depression, massive pressure, low pay, 18 hour days, and I wonder if this is the life I want. I love to teach. I love creating. I love researching (not with R1 intensity). I like flexibility and change, and being with like-minded professionals. All of these reasons and many more made me want to enter this field. But are you who are there happy? Do you get to see your families, make some of your own hours as long as you get your job done, take a fun class at night if you like, or is it 6 years of agony to get tenure to maybe discover you hate where you are and want to move and start over.

I'm not applying at R1s (nor would they want me), and I do love my field and have a real passion for it (and think I do it pretty well). I'm sharp; I've got a solid degree. And I hate 8-5 same-old, same-old schedules. But am I getting into a life of misery? What's good about it? Forgive me if this is a bit melancholy, but I'm genuinely wondering.

[msparticularity]

I've actually been perfectly happy in academia--and I most emphatically do NOT work 18-hour days! Certainly, I am busy, and there are times during the semester when my working life pretty much infuses the rest of my life seven days a week, but I do have flexibility in determining (for example) whether I want to put in a twelve-hour day on a weekday, or if I'd be happier knocking off earlier and coming back to the task over the weekend.

As I've posted elsewhere, I have recently decided to leave my R2 for a position at a SLAC, but this has to do with the kind of orientation I have, rather than with anything like sabotage or massive pressure. My state, and the institutions within it, are living with ongoing fiscal insecurity and anxiety, but that's not true everywhere. My colleagues here are perfectly nice; they're just not interested in the same things that I like to think and talk about. I guess what I would say is that it's dangerous to view an academic position as an earthly Utopia; it's a job, with a lot of the normal stresses and pressures that one would expect anywhere. It does, however, come with the opportunity to do some rather odd things (in relation to other kinds of jobs) that we find of value, and to have a relatively large amount of control over our daily activities. As with any other job, some workplaces and positions are more pleasing than others, and we have to figure out how to handle that.

I had a very successful corporate career before I made a mid-life career change, and I wouldn't go back for anything. However, this kind of a position also does come with its own demands: I have to be able to pace myself, and to set and maintain appropriate boundaries, because there is no one out there who is going to do it for me, or to give me permission to take care of myself. If you're a person who needs someone else to tell you not to work 18 hours a day, and not to go crazy over the pressures of your kind of work, then an academic position is probably a bad idea. If you're ready to balance this stuff for yourself, then academia may be for you.

[watermarkup]

OP, I wondered the same thing while finishing grad school and before I started my first (non-TT) job. After a few months, I discovered that I really liked it. With friendly colleagues, an office to work in, a little travel money, and courses to teach in my subject, I can be very happy. There's probably no way to know for sure until you try it yourself.

One key to having a sane work-life balance is working somewhere with priorities that are a good match for your own. My institution is 100% focused on teaching and has no research requirement, and I'd have much more time at home if I stopped doing research. But I really like research, and I'd be unhappy if I weren't working on something.

[litdawg]

I'm happy. I like my job. I work hard enough. I do most of the things I want to. I spend volume and quality time with my family. Being a professor is a great job IF you have good colleagues AND you are at an institution commensurate with your capabilities (research/teaching mix).

[tuxedo_cat]

I have worked at two different teaching-centered institutions since earning my PhD, and worked as a full-time Instructor while I was finishing the diss (all places with 3/3 teaching loads).  The majority of my colleagues in all these departments were supportive, kind and intellectually stimulating company -- people I genuinely admire.  The wackadoodles were generally easy to steer clear of.  I regularly work about a 50-hour week, but I really love what I do and the flexibility of my hours is important, so that time does not seem onerous to me at all.  I do work that feels creative and challenging and socially worthwhile.  I have had only one truly miserable year in all that time, due to a very unpleasant soup of departmental politics and personal nastiness.  I do feel very lucky in many ways, but I don't think my experience is that uncommon.

So yes, it is absolutely possible to have a very happy career in this profession.  Like any other job, some things are beyond your control -- like wackadoodle colleagues you *can't* avoid or who are in charge of stuff, gah -- and having a good sense of humor and positive attitude are pretty important.

I do not have kids, and that was never a major priority for me -- that would certainly change the picture quite a lot in terms of time commitments and balancing everything.

[pournelle]

The only problem with tt jobs is the difficulty of getting them.

I might have a few hours a month where what I'm doing feels like work. Otherwise it feels like fun. Good fun. The kind that makes you smarter and happier and more alive.

[nocalprof]

Lower-tier R1 STEM field here, 2/1 teaching load, NSF-type funding expected.  I wouldn't trade my job for anything.  Yes it's a big part of my life, but I love my area of study and it's part of who I am (why else would I get a PhD in it?).  I've been able to spend a lot more time with my family than others I know outside academics.  But yes there have been nights where kids are asleep, I've spent some time with my wife, and when she headed off to bed I headed back to work in the home office.

[hegemony]

I am firmly, emphatically convinced that the majority of academic who work these insane hours are working inefficiently.  (Note: this may not apply to scientists -- working in labs seems to be more time-intensive than for non-lab folks.)  I work on average maybe 25-35 hours per week, but I have made a determined effort to streamline everything I do and I work efficiently. The flexible hours are ridiculously good for childcare -- I don't see how people in 9-5 jobs do it.  I get three months off every summer (not to mention three weeks at Christmas, a week in spring, etc.), and I have wangled travel money so I actually spend two months per year abroad.  I get to hang out and talk to people doing fascinating work, and I get to help some wonderful students at a crucial point in their careers.  The only part I could do without is the unmotivated students, but even then I get to talk about stuff I find fascinating.  A lot of my job (grading, writing articles, course prep) I get to do at my own pace in my own time, in my pajamas if I want to.  I never have to punch a clock; I have no one breathing down my neck.  They pay me to do all this.  I've worked for corporations and I thought I would perish from boredom and frustration.  In this job I'm bored about once a year.   What's not to love?

[lurkingfear]

I am firmly, emphatically convinced that the majority of academic who work these insane hours are working inefficiently.  (Note: this may not apply to scientists -- working in labs seems to be more time-intensive than for non-lab folks.)  I work on average maybe 25-35 hours per week, but I have made a determined effort to streamline everything I do and I work efficiently.

This. I'm at an R1 in STEM and maybe things are going to come crashing down around me at some point, but I don't think so. I've been here for 2.5 years, have 5 papers out the door in that time with several more submitted and others in the pipeline, enough grant money from reputable sources to keep the lab going, teach 1/1, and do some service here and there. There's a lot to keep track of, but in my world it's all about surrounding yourself with good people who take direction well. I currently have 7 people in my lab, and for between 30min and 1hr of my time per week, I get 20-60hrs of work from each of them per week. I cited a wide range because it depends on where they are in their degree - coursework takes a lot of their time early on, but once that is finished they mostly work on their projects.

Of course, the number of hours I work depends on what's going on. When I'm teaching a new course for the first time, sure, there are some late nights prepping lectures. But it all gets done, and the little details that I fret about rarely matter when I get to class and it takes 3x as long as I thought to explain the basics. Once my courses are settled I can see it being straightforward. I'll get up early on lecture days, review my notes, go to class, and by 10am move on to research or whatever. Repeat two days later.

[anon99]

I am firmly, emphatically convinced that the majority of academic who work these insane hours are working inefficiently.  (Note: this may not apply to scientists -- working in labs seems to be more time-intensive than for non-lab folks.)  I work on average maybe 25-35 hours per week, but I have made a determined effort to streamline everything I do and I work efficiently.

This. I'm at an R1 in STEM and maybe things are going to come crashing down around me at some point, but I don't think so. I've been here for 2.5 years, have 5 papers out the door in that time with several more submitted and others in the pipeline, enough grant money from reputable sources to keep the lab going, teach 1/1, and do some service here and there. There's a lot to keep track of, but in my world it's all about surrounding yourself with good people who take direction well. I currently have 7 people in my lab, and for between 30min and 1hr of my time per week, I get 20-60hrs of work from each of them per week. I cited a wide range because it depends on where they are in their degree - coursework takes a lot of their time early on, but once that is finished they mostly work on their projects.

Good people in the lab is key.  It also depends on what stage they are at.  This starting out and finishing seem to take more time.  However, unlike hegemony, I would never think of taking 3 months off in the summer as that would have a negative impact on my career.  Summer is when field work gets done, uninterupted (no teaching and very little committee work) lab work, writing, etc. Hegemony is correct that being organized and efficient is key to being productive.

[erzuliefreda]

Being a professor is a great job. That's why competition is so fierce in many fields.

My job is not exactly what I'd pictured when I got into this line of work. I work very hard for less than $50K (I started at less than $45K), I teach a 4-4 load, with 145 students in an average semester, with no TA to help with grading. I am required to keep 10 office hours on top of that, and some of my service work is frustratingly time consuming. The vast majority of my job is working with general education students, teaching a survey class they think is a waste of time. I'm very good at this class, and the students both learn and enjoy themselves, but still, I teach the same class over and over. We have a graduate program, but the admission standards are extremely low, and the students are often not motivated.

So I have one of the least desirable TT jobs in modern U.S. History. But at the same time it's a TT job in modern U.S. History! Once I am done teaching new courses (by next semester I will finally have done them all once), I won't need to spend much time on prep at all. I get to work on my research, although with little financial support--but I love my research so working on it is a joy to me. If I didn't love it, or if I didn't enjoy teaching, this job would not be great.

In the end, being a professor is a great job, but it is still a job. It would be more fun not to work at all, I imagine. But that won't pay the mortgage.

[lurkingfear]

However, unlike hegemony, I would never think of taking 3 months off in the summer as that would have a negative impact on my career.  Summer is when field work gets done, uninterupted (no teaching and very little committee work) lab work, writing, etc.

Indeed, I didn't mean to imply that I can do that. Nor, would I think, can most people. However, it is fairly luxurious to have 3 months each year when I have no external obligations (teaching, service), and can take any conference invitation that comes my way, and spend the rest of my days playing with data or writing papers (or just going for a hike if none of this seems appealing in a given moment).

[lyndonparker]

I have a t-t job at a SLAC, which I got abd out of my doctoral program. I love it here, insofar that my departmental colleagues are great, we have a 2/2 load and some research support, and work with great students. The downside is that pay is relatively low (mid $50s), and we live in a fairly undesirable location (which does have a very low cost of living).

Decide what you want. I have found that the more "prestige" an institution has, the more mean and crazy colleagues you find. So my place is at about the peak of what I can stand. But to each their own.

[niceday]

The only problem with tt jobs is the difficulty of getting them.

I might have a few hours a month where what I'm doing feels like work. Otherwise it feels like fun. Good fun. The kind that makes you smarter and happier and more alive.

Seriously, this. If you are a good match for your institution and your topic, life is good. Very good. Hence the insane competition to get the job.

I enjoy every part of my job except meetings. And those are few compared to corporate world. I'll sometimes complain about teaching but I actually enjoy teaching, too. I am currently crunched for time but that's because I have a great project. I'm really enjoying what I'm doing and I have choices.

[janewales]

I'm a full professor in the humanities at a research university, and I love my job. I do in fact get paid very well, and I live in a beautiful place, but those are not the only reasons I'm happy. I work hard, but the flexibility of an academic workload has made it possible to manage the work and a happy family life too. My worst years have been those when I have had significant administrative commitments, because admin is less flexible in scheduling terms, and because the personalities and politics are much more in one's face during an administrative stint. Even those years have been mostly good, though.

I love teaching and research both; I think sometimes people on the tenure-track discover that they really aren't suited to one of these two main activities, and the state of the market means it can be hard to move to a place that would be a better fit. And of course there are unappealing places to live, toxic workplaces, places that are in extreme financial distress-- but these are not problems unique to an academic career.