The Past Speaks

When I was a PhD student, I once anxiously asked my supervisor about the impact of having children on an academic career – can you have children and be a successful academic?  It was a long way off at that point, but it had nonetheless been on my mind.  I forget her precise answer, but it was along the lines of, ‘if you want to have children, then why not?  And yes, people do have successful academic careers with children.’

There is, of course, a second question that people ask after this.  When is the best time to have children if you want a successful academic career?   Should you wait until you have a permanent job?  Should you wait until you have been promoted to senior/principal lecturer?  What happens if you have a baby during your PhD?  These are all perfectly logical things for people to think about, and there…