双语|如何寻找、申请和选择博士后职位-面试篇（一）

对于想做博士后的学者，如何寻找、申请及选择博士后职位，这位美国神经科学家给出了提示和建议。知识人网小编采用双语对照的形式分别叙述。本篇为面试篇（一）。

VI. The Interview

六、面试

The header of this section is a little misleading here in that there is no single "interview". It's really a process rather than an interview, and thoughtful PIs will take all aspects of this process into account when considering a candidate. The next step after sending out your emails is getting responses from interested PIs wanting to schedule a zoom or phone call with you to discuss your interest further (some PIs may even go straight to an in-person visit). You can think of this as an informal screening interview. It's a chance to introduce yourselves to each other and touch on your scientific and career interests to see whether there is potential for this being a good fit. If both of you feel good about it, the PI will want to schedule a visit.

该标题在这里有点误导，因为没有单一的“面试”，这真的是一个过程，而不是面试。深思熟虑的导师在挑候选人时会考虑这个过程的各个方面。发送邮件后的下一步是收到感兴趣的导师的回复，希望与你进行 zoom 或电话会议，以进一步讨论你的兴趣（有些导师可能会直接进行面对面访问）。你可以将其视为一次非正式的筛选面试。这是一个相互介绍自己并并触及讨论你们的科学和职业兴趣的机会，看看是否有可能成为合适的人选。如果双方都感到良好，导师将会安排一次考察。

When I sent out my emails, the covid19 pandemic was at one of its highest peaks and vaccines weren't yet available. So all my visits were virtual. If at all possible for you, I would try to visit in-person. It's just a more informative experience. So what does a visit entail? It really varies and there is no standard. That said, it will typically involve you giving a talk to either the lab or the department. Then you'll have a meeting/interview with the PI, in addition to meetings with lab members. Meetings with lab members can be several one-on-ones or a group meeting over lunch.

当我发送我的电子邮件时，COVID-19大流行正处于高峰期，疫苗尚未上市。所以我的所有考察都是虚拟的。如果可能的话，我会尝试亲自拜访。这只是一个信息量更大的体验。那么，考察意味着什么呢？这真的各不相同，没有标准。也就是说，它通常会涉及你与实验室或部门进行交谈。然后，除了与实验室成员进行会面外，你还将与导师会面/面谈。与实验室成员的会面可能是几次一对一的会面，也可能是在午餐时的小组会议。

Ahead of some of my visits, I asked the PI whether it was possible to schedule meetings with other faculty in the department that his lab interacts with a lot. I asked for this because I wanted to get a sense for the scientific community I'd be joining, not just the lab. And because it was virtual, my experiences are completely limited to zoom meetings. I also asked to meet with postdocs in the department to get a sense of how postdocs in that department feel. Are they supported? Is there a sense of community?

在我的一些考察之前，我问过导师是否可能安排与他的实验室密切合作的其他教授会面。我提出这个要求是因为我想了解将要加入的科学社区，而不仅仅是实验室。而且由于是虚拟的，我的经历仅限于 zoom 会议。我还要求与该系的博士后会面，以了解该系博士后的感受。他们是否受支持？有团体意识吗？

The Visit - chats with the lab

考察 - 与实验室成员交谈

Okay, so what should you discuss with current lab members during your visit? I've broken down questions into themes here. You don't have to ask all of these, they're just things for you to think about and choose what to ask. My hope is that they serve as a reminder of things you may not have thought to ask, or perhaps thought would be inappropriate to ask. Some of these may be better to ask if you're having a one-on-one meeting rather than a group meeting.

好的。那么在考察期间，你应该与当前的实验室成员讨论什么呢？我在这里将问题分解为主题。你不必问所有这些问题，它们只是供你考虑和要选择要询问的问题。我希望它们能提醒一些你可能没有想到问的事情，或者可能认为不宜问的事情。其中一些可能更适合在一对一的会面中提问，而不是在小组会议中提问。

Lifestyle

生活方式

• How is the postdoc salary for you in this city?

• 在这个城市，你的博士后工资怎么样？

• What's a regular commute like?

• 常规的通勤是什么情况？

• What are some things postdocs do around town here when not in the lab?

• 工作之余，博士后会在城里做些什么？

• Where do most postdocs in the department/institution live? How's the cost of living?

• 院/系的大多数博士后住在哪里？生活成本如何？

• (for people with tiny humans) What are the costs of childcare like? How are the schools?

• （对于有小孩子的人）托儿费如何？学校怎么样？

• What is the postdoc community like? Do you hang out/support one another?

• 博士后社区怎么样？你们一起出去玩/互相支持吗？

Lab Culture

实验室文化

• How do people get along in the lab?

• 实验室成员之间的关系如何？

• What is the structure of responsibilities in the lab?

• 实验室的职责结构是怎样的？

• (when speaking with technicians or students) Do you feel like there are healthy and respectful dynamics between lab members regardless of seniority?

• （与技术人员或学生交谈时）你觉得实验室成员之间无论资历如何，都有健康和尊重的动态吗？

• How often do conflicts arise? How are they resolved?

• 冲突多久发生一次？如何解决？

• Are you happy with your project and with the lab?

• 您对您的项目和实验室满意吗？

• Are labmates collaborative? Or is every postdoc an island?

• 实验室成员之间是合作的吗？还是每个博士后都是单打独斗？

• Do you train each other and help each other out?

• 你们相互训练，互相帮助吗？

Mentorship

指导

• What’s it like working with this PI?

• 与这位导师合作是什么感觉？

• How available is the PI to you? (this is especially important to know for more established PIs)

• 导师对你来说可用吗？（对于更成熟的导师来说，了解这一点尤其重要）

• How do you feel about the PI's expectations of you?

• 你对导师对你的期望感觉如何？

• What happens if one’s project fails (or fails to rise to the desired level of impact)?

• 如果一个项目失败了（或没有达到预期的影响水平）会发生什么？

• Do people get to take projects when they leave?

• 人们离开后可以接项目吗？

• How do you feel about the PI's investment in your project and your success?

• 你如何看待 导师对你的项目和你的成功的投资？

• (related to above) Is the PI a micromanager?

•（与上述相关）导师是一个事无巨细的管理者吗？

• How do you think your PI handled (or is handling) the pandemic?

您认为您的导师是如何处理（或正在处理）大流行病的？

• When people leave the lab, what (if anything) do they take with them? How are they supported?

当人们离开实验室时，他们会带走什么（如果有的话）？如何支持它们？

• Does the PI support postdocs investing time in their own career advancement (fellowship apps, prof dev workshops, etc.)?

• 导师是否支持博士后将时间投入到自己的职业发展中（申请奖学金、参加专业研讨会等）？

Resources

资源

• Let's say you need to buy a new piece of equipment or a reagent, what's that process like? Do you feel that you're able to appropriately carry out that work?

• 假设您需要购买一台新设备或试剂，这个过程是什么样的？你觉得你能够适时开展这项工作吗？

• What are the core facilities available to you, and how easily are you able to use them?

• 你可以使用哪些核心设施，使用起来它们难易程度如何？

• Do you have opportunities to interact and potentially collaborate with other researchers in the department or does the lab stay isolated?

• 您是否有机会与系里其他研究人员进行互动和合作，或者实验室是否保持孤立？

• (for those to whom it's relevant) How is the immigration office in the department?

• （对于与之相关的人员）该部门的移民办公室怎么样？

Remember that everyone's experience will not necessarily be yours, and people have varied experiences and reflections depending on how long they've been in the lab. Once again, the goal is to gather as much information as you can before making a decision for the next 4+ years.

请记住，每个人的经历不一定是你的，人们的经历和反思各不相同，这取决于他们在实验室里呆了多长时间。再次强调，目标是在为未来4年+做出决定之前收集尽可能多的信息。