The AAS Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy and
the AAS Employment Committee have compiled dozens of
interviews highlighting the diversity of career trajectories available to
astronomers, planetary scientists, etc. The interviews share advice and lessons
learned from individuals on those paths.
Below is our interview with Van Dixon, an astronomer who recently moved from instrument scientist to manager at STScI.
For access to all our Career Profile Project
interviews, please visit http://aas.org/jobs/career-profiles. New
Career Profiles are posted approximately every month.
What field do you currently work in?
Astronomy
What is the job title for your current position?
Group Lead
What is the name of your
company/organization/institution?
Space Telescope Science Institute
What city, state, and country do you live in? Work
in?
Live and work in Baltimore, Maryland, USA
What is the highest degree in astronomy/physics you
have received?
Ph.D.
What was your last academic position in
astronomy/physics?
I never had one!
What were the most important factors that led you
to leave astronomy and/or academia?
As a graduate student at the Johns Hopkins
University, I worked on the Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope (HUT), which flew a
couple of times on the Space Shuttle. I
helped to schedule observations, write the data-reduction pipeline, and analyze
the data. As a post-doc, I worked on
another shuttle mission, doing all of the same tasks. By that time, I had developed some marketable
skills, and have been doing it ever since.
If you have made a career change, what was your
age at the time?
I switched to management just last year. I’m in my early 50’s. OK, mid 50’s.
What, if any, additional training did you complete
in order to meet the qualifications?
To be an instrument scientist, it’s been on-the-job
training. To be a manager, I’ve taken management
training here at the institute, but the hard things (listening, compassion,
leadership) are all life lessons.
Describe job hunting and networking resources you
used and any other advice/resources.
Nothing formal, but every
job that I’ve had since graduate school has come though someone whom I’ve known
(or impressed) along the way.
What has been your career path since you completed
your degree?
· Post-Doc,
U.C. Berkeley (two years)
· Assistant
Research Astronomer, U.C. Berkeley (three years)
· Associate
Research Astronomer, JHU (five years)
· Research
Astronomer, JHU (four years)
· Scientist,
STScI
What have been particularly valuable skills for
your current job that you gained through completing your degree?
My thesis advisor, Professor Arthur Davidsen, led
the HUT team, which was not much bigger than my team is now. Something that really impressed me: when
called to make an executive decision, he made a point of listening to everyone
first. Since everyone felt that they had
been heard, they were comfortable with the outcome. When tough problems come up now, I try to
listen to everyone before making a decision.
Describe a typical day at work.
E-mail, e-mail, e-mail. Meetings.
More e-mail.
Do you still interact with people who work
(directly) in astronomy and/or are you still involved in astronomy in some way?
My position includes 20% science time. I try to reserve Fridays for science: no
meetings, no phone calls. It almost
works.
There is a worry among those considering careers
outside of astronomy or academia that you can't "go back" and/or that
you feel that you betrayed advisors, friends, colleagues. Have you felt this
way?
The standard model of graduate education is for
professors to replicate themselves, and anyone who does not end up in academia
is considered a failure. But a Ph.D. in
physics or astronomy is a key that opens all sorts of doors. If you end up doing work you love, then you
are a success.
How many hours do you work in a week?
About 40 to 45, but that number is likely to rise
as we get closer to the launch of JWST.
What is your level of satisfaction with your
current job?
I am very happy with my current job. I might be less happy when annual-review
season begins.
What are the most enjoyable aspects of your job?
Least enjoyable?
An instrument scientist is often presented with the
results of an observation that did not turn out as anticipated. The job is to figure out what went wrong and
how to prevent the problem from recurring.
I love solving those sorts of puzzles.
As a manager, my job has changed from understanding instruments to
understanding people, who are even more puzzling. Least enjoyable? I spend a lot of time in meetings now, but I
try not to mind them. It’s a sort of Zen
practice.
What do you like most about your working
environment? Dislike most?
The best part of my work environment is the
opportunity to interact with my colleagues.
We get together for tea. We talk about
science, or politics, or just gossip. As
the institute has grown, we have moved into additional buildings, making those
sorts of interactions more difficult.
What opportunities does your job provide to be
creative and/or to take initiative?
Managing people is an on-going work of performance
art. I am constantly challenged to
motivate, inspire, console, etc.
Opportunities to take initiative come up whenever someone says, “It
would be great if we could do this.”
Making those things happen is really gratifying.
How satisfied are you with your work-life balance
in your current job?
Things are good.
How family-friendly is your current position?
STScI goes out of its way to accommodate folks who
are juggling work and domestic responsibilities, including children, aging
parents, and heath problems.
What advice do you have for achieving work-life
balance (including having a family)?
I don’t have children, so am spared the
aggravations of childcare, sick kids, and soccer practice. But I moved back to Baltimore to be with my
partner, and we make a point of having dinner together every evening. Making time to be together is key.
What do you do for fun (e.g., hobbies, pastimes,
etc.)?
Cooking, hiking, pretending to garden
Can we include your email address for people who
may want to contact you directly about your specific career route?
dixon@stsci.edu
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