Measuring your growth as an
academic in a developing country is a difficult task. No metrics will do
justice to our growth - not H-index, not the amount of grant won. Every success
you see means going to war with epileptic power supply, erratic and expensive
internet, depressing teaching and administrative schedule, lack of local
grants, painful take-home pay, and socio-cultural challenges. Whichever way you
look at that success, it will be a pyrrhic victory. Behind every publication lies months of hard
work, not-so pleasant experience with reviewers and editors, and personal
cost. Before every submission, you must
check if the journal is subscription based or there is full waiver for your
article. To read the latest articles,
you must leverage on open access articles or trade in your review bonus on Elsevier. Without these two options, you must send
emails to authors and request for articles on ResearchGate.
Looking at my Scopus: an eye on global research profile, you might be
tempted to see growth but do not be deceived. What you are seeing was built on
the back of sacrifices. My fear is not "will I beat last year's
record" but "will the system not drown me". The shear number of courses you will teach,
and volume of students is enough to weary your soul. Every class is like running the marathon,
your body and passion will be drained of every energy. It is not the frequency of meetings or the
length that is problematic, it is the period of notice. Planning your week is a nightmare. Your plan is as good as the number of impromptu meetings you will have that
week.
