Academic Recovery Squad
Short explanation: Stories, questions, and answers about/from people recovering from the utopia/dystopia that was/is getting a diploma from an accredited academic institution. Ask our crew anything about how to survive and thrive before, during, after, and in-between the student era(s) and we’ll talk about our perspectives, how we stayed sane while achieving that (or not), and any other random tangents that may occur. It’s like asking your older sibling a question and then before you know it an hour went by. But I promise we’ll actually answer the question. If you want to challenge me on how well I can keep that promise, submit a question to arsquadpod@gmail.com. Long explanation: Were you coerced into drinking from the academic firehose for more than half your life? You may be entitled to compensation. Is said compensation going to be enough to survive as an adult off of? Maybe. You can go back and exchange more firehose time for more money. Will you actually make more money? Maybe. Is that actually better? Probably yes, but someone has to care about how much you drank from the firehose and what else you were doing while doing that for you to get that benefit. So I guess still maybe. How do you get someone to care about that? I don’t know. I heard that being related to someone whose great^4 grandfather owned a railroad and/or serendipitously saving their niece’s friends’ emotional support peacock from being eaten by alligators on a California golf course helps. Did you find that above sequence unhelpful? So did we. School sucks sometimes. Trying to adjust to being a regulation adult after all you’ve known is school is underratedly difficult. Let’s talk about it. The Academic Recovery Squad is here for your questions! Unfiltered takes on (student) life from current and former students hacking it through/recovering from the undergrad and grad school experience. Ask us anything at arsquadpod@gmail.com. Our best minds will get back to you shortly. Also follow us on socials! Threads/Instagram @arsquadpod Blue Sky @arsquadpod.bsky.social
Listen on:
Episodes
Tuesday Mar 25, 2025
Tuesday Mar 25, 2025
Today's question: Why did you or did you not decide to go back to school? Subquestion - what's the value of field specific certifications?
Carlos and Carlita return to compare and contrast reasons why Carl and Carlita decided to get graduate degrees but Carlos did not. Carlos and Carlita also discuss non-degree certifications they can get in their fields (which don't really exist for Carl's version of biology) and Carl and Carlita compare funding as a bonus (e.g. 5th year, 4 + 1, Co-term) Master's student to how PhD students operate. Also explored: Carl doesn't understand non-English, non-east Asian linguistical marks; how old are your co-workers?
In addition to your regular episode responses/engagement we are also collecting vents, questions, and stories about the current academia situation regarding unprecedented uncertainties in funding and opportunities. If you want to share, hit us up at arsquadpod@gmail.com or on the socials: Threads/Instagram @arsquadpod; Blue Sky @arsquadpod.bsky.social
*Editors Note - the preamble of this episode was recorded on Monday 3/17, before the Trump administration announced the potential dismantling of the Department of Education and Columbia University partially caved to the administration's demands to change certain policies so they could maybe get their funding back. Yikes, stuff did get worse.
Tuesday Mar 11, 2025
Tuesday Mar 11, 2025
Today's Question: What's keeping you motivated right now (to do science/as a scientist)?Carl and Dan explore the drivers of their internal motivation, including what it means to be hyper focused in academia versus industry as well as some pros and cons about each working mode now that we've been there for a while. Also discussed: Carl gives another lesson on how the clarinet works, biohackers, and caffeine sensitivities.Got an inquiry for a some industry biologists trying to navigate the world and actively figuring it that out it's harder to detangle than a metabolomic pathway? Send it along to arsquadpod@gmail.com!Follow us on socials too! Threads/Instagram: @arsquadpod Blue Sky @arsquadpod.bsky.social
Tuesday Mar 04, 2025
Tuesday Mar 04, 2025
Today's question: What does having a PhD mean to you?Carl and Zach talk at length about their grad school journeys and the definition of what having a PhD (in sciences) means we got certified for. Also in this episode, failing your qualifying exam can be a good thing, cellos are sexy, and whoever said not to think about money when deciding to go to grad school was lying to you.Got a burning question that your friendly internet postdoc can help you with? Send it along to arsquadpod@gmail.com!Follow us on socials too! Threads/Instagram: @arsquadpod Blue Sky @arsquadpod.bsky.social
Tuesday Feb 25, 2025
Tuesday Feb 25, 2025
Today's question - Are you doing now what you thought you would do with your (advanced) degree? How do you feel about that?
Carl and Jade tackle how Jade felt jaded about the law (as a lawyer/related practitioner of the law) but is now finding her footing after a couple of post-law school focus changes. Also covered in this episode: Extreme couponing is still a thing you can do but with apps, meeting your immigrant parents' expectations doesn't make your relationship with them less complicated, and how much it must have sucked trying to get a job before the internet age.
We've got folks from all types of school coming around! Have a question you want heard? Ask us anything at arsquadpod@gmail.com
Also follow us on socials!
Threads/Instagram @arsquadpod
Blue Sky @arsquadpod.bsky.social
Tuesday Feb 18, 2025
Tuesday Feb 18, 2025
Today's question: Do you think you went to the right school for undergrad? Do you have buyer's remorse about that?
Carl and his siblings, Carlos, and Carlita (yes our parents were very creative), discuss our undergrad experiences and the age old question "would you do it the same now knowing how it went". Topics also covered, generic infrastructure "gifted" to us by our parents that we were only sort of ok at using, Carlos might need to go back to high school math class, and Duck Syndrome.
Got a topic or question related to transitioning in or out of student life that you'd want to hear some random people on the internet riff about? Submit questions to arsquadpod@gmail.com
Also follow us on socials!
Threads/Instagram @arsquadpod
Blue Sky @arsquadpod.bsky.social
Tuesday Feb 11, 2025
Tuesday Feb 11, 2025
Today's question - Why did you decide to go back to school?
Carl tries not doing an episode preamble before he talks to his friend Jack about his experience with school, what motivated him to go back to school for a non-MBA master's degree, and what, and how that meshed with his life as a working engineer. Also Carl teaches Jack about CRISPR biology and resents having to choose between the engineer and scientist check boxes on a job application, but Jack thinks that might be ok.
Got a question you want to hear some random recovering academics talk about? Email us! arsquadpod@gmail.com
Also follow us on socials!
Threads/Instagram @arsquadpod
Blue Sky @arsquadpod.bsky.social
Tuesday Feb 11, 2025
Tuesday Feb 11, 2025
Today's question - what is your opinion of the concept of school in general?
Carl and Julia discuss the fact that they've been in school literally forever and how it feels now that they're no longer in school (sort of) in relation to how long that was. Also on the docket: toddlers are basically cats - change my mind; what do you do socially when you're too old to go to the club but don't have kids yet?
Tuesday Feb 11, 2025
Tuesday Feb 11, 2025
Hello internet! Welcome to the Academic Recovery Squad feed - the show about transitions from school kid to adult kid and how to get there. Got a question you'd be curious to hear some random people on the internet who have done a lot of school answer? Email us at arsquadpod@gmail.com. Hit us up too on socials: @arsquadpod on Threads/Instagram ; @arsquadpod.bsky.social on Blue Sky.