キャリアニュース2019年1月18～22日

I sat hunched over my computer screen, analyzing data, when a university administrator walked into our lab and handed out a series of sealed envelopes. Puzzled, I opened the letter addressed to me: “It has become necessary for the University to effect a layoff of your position as a Postdoctoral Scholar.” In silence, my labmates opened their own letters, all of which said essentially the same thing. I knew that our lab was under investigation, but I had no inkling that my job was in jeopardy, so the news came as a huge shock. My mind raced from concerns about my personal finances—“How will I pay rent?”—to questions about my future in science: “How will we finish our experiments? Will this mark the end of my research career?” ![Figure][1]</img> ILLUSTRATION: ROBERT NEUBECKER Three years earlier, I had started my postdoc brimming with enthusiasm, excited to work for a brilliant scientist on a project that, we hoped, would help people with hearing loss—a group that includes me. My enthu