Beginning researchers benefit from more clarity
The start of the City-Pier-City-run 2024 (Photo: Iris van den Broek /ANP)
Unclear requirements for the quality of their work, a work environment that appears informal but still has a strong hierarchy, and many temporary positions. Beginning researchers at universities, university medical centers, and colleges sometimes struggle with significant uncertainty. They expressed this in conversations the Rathenau Instituut had with them about the obstacles they experience in their work. Clearer agreements and a less competition-focused culture can help reduce these obstacles.
In short
- Uncertainty causes mental pressure and leads to the postponement of important decisions such as having children and buying a house.
- A less hierarchical and competitive culture makes it easier for beginning researchers to express their needs.
- Postdoctoral researchers, in particular, are in an uncertain position.
For the report published today, 'An Insecure Start', the Rathenau Instituut spoke with 42 early career researchers. This group included PhD candidates (working on their dissertations), postdoctoral researchers (who have completed their dissertations), and practice-oriented researchers (working at universities of applied sciences).
These conversations revealed that they often struggle to understand what their supervisors and the institutions they work for expect from them. At universities and university medical centers, the requirements are not always clearly defined, and at universities of applied sciences, this uncertainty sometimes seems to be related to the less established tradition of conducting research. For early career researchers, it is often unclear on what basis they can take the next step in their careers.
Mental pressure
These uncertainties cause significant mental pressure, especially because early career researchers often have high scientific ambitions for which only a limited number of positions are available. Anything extra or better they do might increase their chances of the next step in their career. However, this comes at a cost: many mental health issues, little free time, and postponement of important decisions such as having children or buying a house.
The Rathenau Institute conducted this research at the request of the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. It builds on a survey about the motivations and barriers of researchers that the Rathenau Institute published a year and a half ago. A large majority of the approximately 2,200 participants in that survey indicated experiencing obstacles related to the environment in which they work.
‘Early career researchers benefit from clear agreements on what is expected of them,’ says researcher Lionne Koens of the Rathenau Institute. ‘The responsibility for this lies not only with them and their supervisors but also with universities and university medical centers, which can make their cultures less hierarchical and competitive. This would make it easier for early career staff to express what support they need, not only professionally but also for their personal development.
Temporary contracts
The report further clarifies that the position of postdoctoral researchers is particularly vulnerable. They often work at universities and university medical centers on temporary contracts, which can be extended a maximum of two times. After that, they must look for another employer and often also relocate. Frequently, a portion of the knowledge they have built up is lost when they leave. Of the approximately 3,700 postdocs in the Netherlands, two-thirds come from abroad, with one-third even coming from outside the European Union. Their position is even more precarious because their residence permits depend on their job and income.
Read the report
