Ep.14 – Mid-career Burnout

Mid-career development can be daunting and challenging in an academic career. With much emphasis on junior faculty, and also senior faculty who take leadership roles, mid-career development is often overlooked. A mid-career burnout resulting in a career slump can occur to many of us. As hard as we try to avoid admitting or even talking about struggles and challenges we face as mid-career, the reality is - it is real and if you experience it - you are not alone. In this show, we interview Prof. Michelle Portman, Associate Professor of Technion Israel Institute of Technology, leading the MarCoast Ecosystems Integration Laboratory. She shares her academic journey particularly during her mid-career and provides some advice on how to face and overcome mid-career burnout. Reference list:

• Music by RuthAnn Schallert-Wygal (schallert.wygal@gmail.com)
• Artwork is created using Canva (canva.com)

References for reviewers:

• https://science.sciencemag.org/content/348/6240/1282/tab-pdf
• https://hbr.org/2019/03/facing-your-mid-career-crisis

Contact list: You can find more information about Prof. Michelle Portman on https://portman.net.technion.ac.il If you have any comments about our show or have suggestions for a future topic, please contact us at info@thisacademiclife.org. You can also find us on webpage https://thisacademiclife.org and on facebook group “This Academic Life”. Cast list:

• Prof. Michelle Portman (guest) is an Associate Professor at Technion Israel Institute of Technology. https://portman.net.technion.ac.il Her column “You’ll be OK” appeared in Science Working Life can be found here https://science.sciencemag.org/content/348/6240/1282/tab-pdf
• Prof. Kim Michelle Lewis (host) is a Professor of Physics and Associate Dean of Research, Graduate Programs, and Natural Sciences in the College of Arts and Sciences at Howard University.
• Prof. Pania Newel (host) is currently an Assistant Professor in the Mechanical Engineering Department at The University of Utah.
• Prof. Lucy Zhang (host) is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering in the Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Nuclear Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI).

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