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Cecilia, Postdoc UK

Name: Dr. Cecilia Gialdini

Where you are from: Italy 

PhD University: Ulster University, Belfast 

PhD topic area:  Social Policy (Linguistic justice, language policy and planning) 

Current job title and company: Postdoc Fellow at the University of Edinburgh 

Current location: Between Belfast and Edinburgh  

 

How would you describe to your granny/granddad what you do for work? 

My Nonna is actually the person who encouraged me to go to university. She had to give up her studies in middle school due to the war, but she pushed me to never stop learning. In fact, my upcoming book, based on my thesis, is going to be dedicated to her. When she tells her friends what I do, she usually says I am a sociologist and that I study how society and individuals relate to each other. In particular, I look at how the language one speaks can impact their life when they live in a country where the majority of people speak another language. She says I work with minorities, like the Germans in South Tyrol in Italy, but also with people who migrate to a different country for work or to escape difficult situations. 

 

What does a typical day/week look like for you?  

I work in Edinburgh but live in Belfast, so my workweek changes depending on where I am at the moment. If I am in Edinburgh, I go to my allocated office and meet with my team to discuss our project's state-of-the-art and possible future developments, usually over coffee and chocolates. When I am in Belfast, I work from my home office, under the rigorous supervision of Mordecai, my pet rabbit, or I head to my co-working space, conveniently next to a yoga studio. 

I usually start by answering emails and taking care of admin tasks to get them out of the way. Then, I dedicate most of my day to catching up with the latest articles and writing. Lately, I have been writing at least 3-4 hours a day! Once a week, I work on turning my thesis into a book, and I am also working on two articles and postdoctoral project proposals. It’s a very hectic time but also very exciting. 

I tend to end the day with some recreational activity to switch my brain off, either hitting the gym or catching a yoga class. I recently started an Irish course because I love learning new things (and because my partner is Irish). 

 

What’s the best thing about your job? 

Working in research, you really can exercise your creativity. Plus, I have always loved learning so I am grateful to have a job that is based on that.  

 

What hard skills does someone need for your job? 

Some hard skills are very specific to the nature of the research and can be learned ad hoc. So, while some knowledge of qualitative and quantitative method is necessary, I wouldn’t worry too much about getting hours and hours on R and Stata unless you know it is helpful in your field. However, investing in more creative methods will set you apart from other candidates in job interviews: by all means, get training in visual methods, social network analysis or online focus groups. Also, learning other languages is an excellent investment because it will help you to access more material. Another skill I would recommend one gather is non-violent communication: while this was designed to solve conflicts, it is actually very helpful to make your point across with people you don’t know very well or to navigate power dynamics (for instance, if you are working with difficult supervisors or if you join a research team of people you have never met). 

 

What soft skills does someone need for your job? 

The most obvious will be creativity and critical thinking. But I have learned that adaptability to adverse situations is paramount! There will always be a hiccup with your ethical approval, your interview schedule, software download …or, in my case, a global pandemic stopping the whole world. Just embrace the chaos and make tons of contingency plans! Also, definitely open-mindedness: you need to be able to question yourself, reflect on your views and be aware that what you read or encounter in data might challenge your perspective. Everything is true until proven otherwise, and you might discover that that “otherwise” happens more often than you think. Also, I think it’s fundamental to be able to distance yourself from your work: academia is largely based on feedback, criticism and rejections. It’s important to accept the comments as an opportunity to reconsider your work but not as a personal attack… rejections will come, even to the most excellent people, but they don’t say anything about your dedication or your intelligence. When your supervisor or a reviewer send you a wall of text of comments, breathe, take a moment and bounce back.   

 

In 10 years' time, what job/position do you see yourself in?  

I am working to get a Lectureship position in Sociology or Social Policy. I love to teach and the stability of a permanent position would give me the possibility to apply for grants for collaborative projects to develop my research together with likeminded researchers. In 10 years I also hope to be a PhD supervisor or mentor, and I am looking forward to encourage younger scholars to excel in their fields, giving back what I have learned in the process.  

 

What advice would you give to someone starting out in your industry? 

If you like to learn new things, if you take joy from writing and from chatting with people about the newest discoveries in science and society, then this is the job for you. You will get to travel, to meet like-minded people, and you will feel the warm comfort and pride of making contributions to human knowledge. But, do not take it as a “mission”: research is exciting, but it is still a job, at the end of the day. Some days will be boring and some days will be annoying, just like any other jobs. Take breaks, find hobbies to help you recharge and unwind and most importantly… do not work on weekends! 

 

What advice would you give to someone coming to the end of their PhD? 

You almost made it! Take a moment to look back at how far you have come: think about your first day, when you had no idea of what you were doing. Now you are the expert in your topic. Think about the first words you blurted out on a blank page. Now you have a whole manuscript that you wrote. Think about your first conference, where you felt like an imposter among all these scholars. Now you are the scholar. This journey is hard, but you are almost at the end, and you should be proud of yourself. Well done, colleague!  

 

How can people contact you?