I’M GONNA GET MY PHD IN FIGHTING CLIMATE CHANGE party-parrot-science lets-fucking-go

thank you all for your support and well wishes and generally helping me keep my sanity, comrades 🥺😭

  • durruticore [none/use name]@hexbear.netEnglish
    4·
    6 days ago

    That’s so fucking cool. Out of curiosity, (without doxing yourself) how did you move from finance to env sci? like, did you do something super STEM and you can work with numbers in general?

    • Lerios [hy/hym]@hexbear.netOPEnglish
      1·
      4 days ago

      my degree is in physics, and in first year we were shown a graph of, by percentage, what physics grads tend to end up doing. it was pretty depressing lmao - maybe 20% in research, 10% in engineering/material science etc, the rest split between finance and IT and teaching.

      finance places love physics/engineering grads because its a subject that combines hardcore maths with programming and abstract problem solving. the only problem is that the work is fuckign soul sucking and most scientists actually go into science in the first place so that they can… do science lmao.

      i took the job to pay rent and make savings for 2 years before i go back to being poor, and all the while i was looking into env science to make use of my degree and go back to doing something worthwhile. i literally submitted most of my applications on company time lmao.

      i basically just scammed a finance company into giving me money while under-performing on all their metrics for two solid years. now they’re clearly prepping to fire me but i’m just going to hand in my notice as soon as i’ve finished my vacation. this literally could not have gone better cool-dad

  • Lerios [hy/hym]@hexbear.netOPEnglish
    50·
    7 days ago

    now that i’m out of this evil dumbshit industry, if i ever have to think about fucking financial regulation ever again in my life i’m going to become a terrorist

    actually tbh my goal with this job was to try to leave this company worth less than it was when they hired me. and. i mean that certainly has happened lmao. thanks JPDON michael-laugh rat-salute

    • Yeat [he/him]@hexbear.netEnglish
      3·
      7 days ago

      Can I ask what industry you used to be in/what you’re getting a phd in now without doxxing yourself? I only ask because I’m interested in pursuing environmental engineering

      • Lerios [hy/hym]@hexbear.netOPEnglish
        1·
        4 days ago

        right now i’m in finance as like banking numbercrunching software support - banks and investment places email me when their numbers stop looking good to bitch about how our software is making them poorer (half the time its not, they’re just either mathematically illiterate finance bros or they’re trying to do something that breaks regulation and getting upset that it won’t do crime). this is my first ever job and it just annoys me lmao, so i’m out.

        my degree was physics, and finance places love that for maths/technology/problem solving skills, but also most real practical science requires all sorts of people - engineers, chemists, robotics ppl, programmers, even fucking lawyers - so something that isn’t technically a physics role, like enviromental engineering, will still 10000% hire you if you fit. really, they just want specific skills, not specific knowledge. the first part of my phd programme literally involves some regular taught lectures like its an undergrad or something, because no one expects you to know everything about what you’re doing right off the bat, they want ability and willingness to learn. if you’re interested in something but don’t feel like you fit the bill for whatever reason, absolutely talk to them - alternate ways to get involved in phds/masters/research are 100% a thing. if your original degree is in STEM you can absolutely pursue enviromental science. get in touch with unis you’re interested and talk to that department, each one is different, but they will all definitely have one or two students from non-typical paths

        (you can also probably do it without a stem degree, but idk about that myself personally)

        hell, my finance bullshit was apparently part of the reason they wanted me - not bc of the SQL and programming and stuff, but because i have demonstrated that i can write emails and be polite and just generally be a functional person in a proffesional enviroment, which your average just-graduated student hasn’t (tbh i haven’t proved that either lmao, i openly suck at my job, but i didn’t give them my manager’s info to ask)

        idk, i’m not an expert but generally this just proved to me that its way less scary and rigid than i thought. 10000% go for it comrade, good luck <3