EA - Writing about my job: Academic Researcher by Kyle Smith

Welcome to The Nonlinear Library, where we use Text-to-Speech software to convert the best writing from the Rationalist and EA communities into audio. This is: Writing about my job: Academic Researcher, published by Kyle Smith on September 12, 2023 on The Effective Altruism Forum.I've greatly enjoyed reading the other posts from Career Conversations Week. I think these types of conversations can be incredibly helpful. I thought I would add my perspective as an academic that thinks of themselves as EA-adjacent.Basic information: I am an Assistant Professor of Accounting at Mississippi State University. I think a good framework for thinking about accounting scholarship is as an area of applied economics - we use the same theories/methods as economists, we are just focused on the role of accounting information specifically (and accounting topics such as auditing and taxation). My research agenda is pretty niche within accounting research - I study nonprofit organizations, which is why I have learned about and started to become involved with EA. A lot of what I am working on focuses on the donor decision-making process and how to encourage more impactful giving.Background:I have undergraduate degrees in accounting and economics, and my work experience was in federal consulting with a Big4 accounting firm, working on audit readiness for a DoD agency. Interesting work, but I felt at the time that the long-term career trajectory would not be personally satisfying.I then did a PhD in Accounting at the University of Alabama. I could write a whole separate post about the PhD experience, but I had a generally very good time. I was paid enough to live on, had a supportive spouse, had a great relationship with my advisor, and performed well-enough that after my first year, didn't doubt much that I could complete it. I also discovered a passion for research, which made this a very exciting time.Application Process:The academic job market is a unique beast so I won't spend too much time on it. A research job at an R1 university is a difficult thing to achieve (and that difficulty depends a lot on the field you are in).A high-quality PhD program will maximize your odds of placing at the best universities, so following the lead of your fellow PhD students and advice of your advisor should steer you in the right direction. Where you choose to do your PhD is of extreme importance, so spend a lot of time deciding where to do your PhD.Accounting PhDs don't often place in industry, so I don't have any real advice on that unfortunately.What the job is like:I'll start by saying being an academic is a very strange job - it is remarkably different from my previous experience in public accounting. It is very much a lifestyle - most end up being an academic for their entire career.I am responsible for 2 courses per semester (one undergrad course and one master's course). I have a TON of flexibility on the materials and how I teach the courses, which is both good and bad. The good is that I get to teach what I want. The bad is that as I am still creating/prepping my courses, I spend approximately 3 days a week during the semester on teaching and prep. Eventually, this should get down to 2 days a week.The rest of my time is devoted to research. I have an active research pipeline (around 9 projects, which is frankly too many), with projects at various stages. Currently, I spend around 3+ days a week on research, with an eye toward getting that to 4+ once my classes are a bit more developed.As a general point, one major advantage of academia is the level of autonomy. Outside of my 2 scheduled lectures, I have complete and total control of my schedule and that allows me to work when and how I want.One of the reasons I love research is that I have ownership over the end product, rather than being a cog in the machine of a major corporation. This, along with the publish or perish reality of academic jobs, means that I tie up a lot of my person...