Thoughts on lab/office/field jobs?
Ask a Biologist 4/1/24
Answers from Biologists:
Bioinformatics (office/lab) lets me pursue larger scale evolutionary questions.
Everyone is different. I really enjoy a nice balance. The office side is just as important as the field side.
For an ex-fieldworker, a full time office job is taking its toll on my connection to the work.
A good balance of both the lab and fieldwork gives you some time to rest, reset, recharge for both.
I wish I had appreciated my low responsibility of field jobs more before getting my office job.
Office jobs can become the norm the more advanced in your career you go.
Bodies give out. Having valuable office skills is a gift when you get old/sick/tired.
Balance. You can see the fieldwork in the broader research/conservation perspective.
Savor the adventure of fieldwork early on, then accept the tradeoff of less fieldwork for stability later on.
The really underrated jobs are ones that are work from home/field with lab access.
Love the balance. Office/lab days are more predictable which is helpful as a parent.
Travelling hours to get to your field site is 100% worse than actually being in the field.
It really depends on how extreme the weather can be where you’re working in either summer or winter.
I appreciate the more office related role that I am in now. I don’t think I could do what I could 20 years ago.
Office job all the way. I prefer being outdoors on my own time, where I want, when I want.
GIS tech-I spend ample free time outside on my own. I finally have a community after years of seasonal jobs.
Spending some time in the office/lab makes time in the field much more enjoyable. Balance is key.
Took a 100% office job after years of teching and hated it. Now I’m 20-40% office and love it.
The transition from fieldwork to office can be really difficult for people with ADHD.
Some office days mean I actually enjoy field days when I’m out.
I thought I would miss fieldwork more. The office work lets me keep a consistent exercise schedule.
Love a good mix. Field time is fun but often means being away from home and irregular, long hours.
Being able to spend days in the office in the height of field season prevents burnout for me.
A balance. I’m physically disabled so less able to do the fieldwork.
Not being able to go into the field at all has ruined my mental health.
A balance is good. Everyone has different health needs.
Field jobs are awesome when you’re young. As you age and/or get injured, office jobs are a blessing.
Choosing to exercise and recreate for fun, not work has repaired my relationship with nature.
Office job allows me to pursue my passion in art, martial arts, and culture.
Fieldwork becomes increasingly difficult to fit in if/when you choose to start a family.
Preferred field work quantity really prefers on if you are going home after work.
Office is where all the action is. Planning, policy making, education, outreach, management decisions, etc.
Getting to the point where I can choose to not go into the field has been a game changer.
Office jobs tend to pay much more.
Office jobs are underrated and valuable to natural resource management.
Jobs with less fieldwork allow a much more consistent schedule so more of a life outside your job.
Having a lab based MS let me have a life and get a dog/do hobbies because I wasn’t gone in the field.
If you want decent pay and career prospects, the office will be an ever larger part of it.
