Name: Rachel Lackner (she/her)
PhD: Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, 2022
What was your main area of research?
My PhD was in organic chemistry, with a focus on the synthesis of dyes and other chemical tools that could help us visualize or control protein-protein interactions. As part of one project, I optimized a series of protein "dimerizers" that could bring two proteins into proximity or target a protein to a cellular location to study the impact of this interaction. After synthesizing the dimerizer series, I developed a quantitative microscopy assay to evaluate their performance and study the impact of structure on dimerization efficiency and speed. The top performing dimerizer was then sent to our collaborator to study questions related to cancer biology.
What is your current job?
I am a Fellow for the Department of Scientific Research at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, NY.
Note: my fellowship recently ended, and I'm in the early stages of starting a new position!
Analysis of artwork happens in many stages. The first stage involves meeting with curators/conservators who have a question they would like to know about the art materials. For example, they might want to know if a synthetic dye was used in a garment in order to know when it was made. Then the scientists decide what kind of chemical analysis may be necessary (non-invasive, invasive, mass spectrometry, spectroscopy, etc), and collect the data. Understanding the data often involves art historical research to contextualize and understand our findings. We then translate our data into a report, which is targeted to non-scientists as well as scientists. Sometimes a small request can turn into a larger research project and academic publications. There may also be an opportunity to get involved in an exhibition, such as by helping to write wall labels or a catalogue essay. An important part of working at a museum is connecting with the public, so there are opportunities to participate in public programming and other kinds of outreach as well.
Working at a museum with such a vast collection of objects from across the world means that there is always something new to learn. In one day I might go from analyzing a Balenciaga dress, to writing a report on 3rd century Coptic textile, to reading about lichen phytochemistry. It's also an inherently collaborative environment, where everyone's perspective is necessary to put together a coherent story about an artwork.
How did you find this position? What were the career steps you took to get to where you are now?
Not every museum has a science lab, and not every museum science lab can support postdocs every year, but I found out about the yearly Met fellowship through their website: https://www.metmuseum.org/about-the-met/fellowships.
When I was applying to jobs, I found UDel's list, which is updated regularly, to be helpful: https://www.artcons.udel.edu/jobs-internships/jobs.
I also became a member of AIC (the American Institute for Conservation) so I could see job postings on the ConsDistList: https://community.culturalheritage.org/communities/community-home?CommunityKey=ea3d002c-9fc3-4446-b7d2-c308f5faed13.
PhD graduate ➡️ Met fellow ➡️ tbd!
Why did you decide to not pursue a career in academia?
For me, the decision was less about moving away from a career in academia and more about moving towards a career in conservation science. I think that distinction is really important, especially when applying for jobs. I was curious about conservation science from early on in my PhD and made a point about reading articles and talking to people, which cemented my interest over the years.
I did not feel like I connected with the work that I was doing in my PhD, but I did recognize that certain aspects (the photochemistry of dyes, mass spectrometry) did appeal to me. The work I do is still somewhat academic (I publish and go to conferences), but I'm much more interested in and motivated by the questions I'm answering.
What advice do you have for someone getting their PhD and looking to pursue a career outside of academia?
My advice is to cold email people whose work you're interested in (and to pay it forward when you're on the receiving end of cold emails in the future). You should always assume that people who like their jobs will want to talk to you about their work.
In your PhD/postdoc, focus on building skills rather than worrying about making sure your research is directly connected to what you want to do after. For example, although dyes are what most obviously connected my PhD work to my postdoc, the strong foundation in synthetic chemistry was most appealing to the people who ultimately hired me.
Finally, as I said previously, it's important to move towards something positive rather than away from something negative. Yes, grad school is hard and grueling and academia can wear you down. But employers can also tell when you're applying to an "alternative career" simply because you hate where you are now. Figure out what you do like about your PhD and think creatively about how you can pursue those aspects.
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