Resignation

I resigned from my tenure-track position over a month ago. Since then, I have felt a huge sense of relief. I can’t say I haven’t been scared, or doubted myself, but I can say that emotionally and intellectually, I know this is the right decision. I will finish this academic year and then move into one household this summer! I’m thrilled at the prospect of living in one home!

This was the only possibility for me to save my family and myself. I feel like I have made a huge investment in the future emotional and physical health of myself and my partner. In addition, financially supporting 2 households was becoming more and more impossible for us. Few other career paths would ask this much from me for such few financial and emotional rewards.

Now comes the process of figuring out the next step. This is incredibly exciting and also overwhelming. I don’t know where to start. Like most grad students,  I was never given any guidance on how to market my skills outside of academia. In fact, for many years, I believed that I had no valuable skills except for those relevant to a tenure-track academic career path.

But thanks to many altac/postac folks who’ve come before me, I have come to see how applicable my skills can be in other fields, or in other parts of higher education. The difficult task ahead of me is being able to effectively communicate those strengths and skills outside of the academic job market. I’m excited to see what unfolds in the next chapter of my life!