AASWomen for July 19th, 2013
Issue of July 19, 2013
eds. Michele M. Montgomery, Daryl Haggard, Nick Murphy & Nicolle Zellner
This week's issues:
1. Welcoming new and guest editors: Nicolle Zellner & Elysse Voyer
2. Grad School Blues
3. Advice: Negotiating for a Tenure-Track Position
4. AAS DPS Dependent Grants
5. Women: The Programmers of Tomorrow
6. Why don't we appreciate smart women?
7. Job Opportunities
8. How to Submit to the AASWomen Newsletter
9. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWomen Newsletter
10. Access to Past Issues of the AASWomen Newsletter
1. Welcoming new and guest editors: Nicolle Zellner & Elysse Voyer
From: AASWomen Editors [aaswomen_at_aas.org]
The AASWomen Editors welcome Nicolle Zellner to our editorial ranks. Nicolle is an Associate Professor of Physics at Albion College, where she teaches general astronomy and upper-level physics courses. Her research interests focus on understanding the impact history in the Earth-Moon system, the extraterrestrial delivery of biomolecules, and how impacts affect the conditions for life on Earth. Nicolle actively engages in professional and public outreach activities, including invited talks and observing sessions.
We also welcome Elysse Voyer as our new guest editor. Elysse is a postdoc at the Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Marseille. She studies the evolution of star-forming galaxies, with particular emphasis on intermediate redshifts. Elysse edited for our June 14, 2013 newsletter and will be sharing her talents again in the coming months.
We all look forward to working with Nicolle and Elysse.
Back to top.2. Grad School Blues
From: Jessica Kirkpatrick via womeninastronomy.blogspot.com
A few years back UC Berkeley did a study of the mental health of graduate students. The results were quite astounding.
The study found that 67% of graduate students said they had felt hopeless at least once in the last year; 54% felt so depressed they had a hard time functioning; and nearly 10% said they had considered suicide. Female respondents were more likely to report feeling hopeless, exhausted, sad, depressed, or suicidal. By comparison, an estimated 9.5% of American adults suffer from depressive disorders, according to the National Institute of Mental Health.
To read more, please see
http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/2013/07/grad-school-blues.html
Back to top.3. Advice: Negotiating for a Tenure-Track Position
From: Alison Coil via womeninastronomy.blogspot.com
A great thing to do is ask people at other institutions who have recently started their faculty jobs what they asked for and what they got. It's good to know what the range is, and there can be a significant difference in what is offered from place to place. You'll be at a disadvantage if you don't know what is reasonable. You can also ask recent hires at your own institution. Everyone who I asked gave me information; no one was offended, they all wanted to help. So the first thing to do is gather information on what other people are getting!
Things that people routinely ask/negotiate for now: - Salary - Always ask for 10% more than what they offer. Your starting salary often affects your long-term salary, so best to keep it high in the beginning if possible. - Summer salary - Ask for 4 months of summer salary - Lab space - Ask for what you'll need in 5 years, not the first year - Office space - Ask to be near the center of action, near faculty with similar scientific interests - Teaching relief - Always ask for at least one class less than normal the first year. Some people ask for an additional one class of relief to be taken sometime in the first N years - this is especially useful if one is going to be extremely busy one semester setting up a new lab or conducting a major new survey or if you have a child!
To read more, please see
http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/2013/07/advice-negotiating-for-tenure-track.html
Back to top.4. AAS DPS Dependent Grants
From: Karly Pitman [pitman_at_psi.edu]
The AAS Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) Professional Development Subcommittee is pleased to open this year's application cycle for the DPS Dependent Care Grant program.
Up to $250 per applicant is available for DPS members to subsidize child, elder, or disabled dependent care during the DPS conference week (6-11 October 2013). Funds may be used either at the DPS meeting location or at home. Preference will be given to those presenting and those with the greatest financial need.
To apply, please fill out the online form by Sep. 2, 2013 at
http://aas.org/dps-45th-meeting/45th-dps-meeting-dependent-care
This program is sponsored by the new AAS DPS Susan Niebur Professional Development Fund. We thank Curt Niebur, the DPS Committee, DPS Professional Development Subcommittee, and AAS for their work in making this possible. For more information on Susan, the fund, and how to donate, see
http://dps.aas.org/development/susan-niebur-professional-development-fund
Editors' note: The DPS Professional Development Fund and Dependent Care Grants are also discussed in recent Women in Planetary Science and Women in Astronomy blog posts:
http://womeninplanetaryscience.wordpress.com/2013/07/16/new-susan-niebur-professional-development-fund-and-dps-dependent-care-grants
http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/2013/07/signal-boost-dps-susan-niebur.html
Back to top.5. Women: The Programmers of Tomorrow
From: Caroline Simpson [simpsonc_at_galaxy.fiu.edu]
Programming isn't a gender based profession, so why aren't many females getting involved in this field? This video from students at Miami Springs High School encourages girls to take a computer programming class by showing them that it is about problem solving and being creative; a whole new world waiting to be discovered.
This video is available online at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPRfDC8kTqM
Back to top.6. Why don't we appreciate smart women?
From: Matthew Greenhouse [matthew.a.greenhouse_at_nasa.gov]
Four out of the eight people joining this year's class of NASA astronauts are highly skilled women who won out over 6300 other applicants. In this blog post, Natalia Hawk argues that the accomplishments of these women should be celebrated because our society does not spend nearly enough time celebrating or appreciating smart women.
To read more, please see
http://www.mamamia.com.au/social/why-dont-we-appreciate-smart-women
Back to top.7. Job Opportunities
For those interested in increasing excellence and diversity in their organizations, a list of resources and advice is here:
http://www.aas.org/cswa/diversity.html#howtoincrease
** Assistant, Associate, or Full Professor of Astronomy, Amherst College's Department of Physics: https://jobs.amherst.edu/view/opportunity/id/585
** A variety of openings are available at AURA: http://www.aura-astronomy.org/hr/joblist.asp
Back to top.8. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter
To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_aas.org
All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.
When submitting a job posting for inclusion in the newsletter, please include a one-line description and a link to the full job posting.
Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.
Back to top.9. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter
Join AAS Women List by email:
Send email to aaswlist+subscribe_at_aas.org from the address you want to have subscribed. You can leave the subject and message blank if you like.
Be sure to follow the instructions in the confirmation email. (Just reply back to the email list)
To unsubscribe by email:
Send email to aawlist+unsubscribe_at_aas.org from the address you want to have UNsubscribed. You can leave the subject and message blank if you like.
To join or leave AASWomen via web, or change your membership settings:
https://groups.google.com/a/aas.org/group/aaswlist
You will have to create a Google Account if you do not already have one, using https://accounts.google.com/newaccount?hl=en
Google Groups Subscribe Help:
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Back to top.10. Access to Past Issues
http://www.aas.org/cswa/AASWOMEN.html
Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.
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