Am I updating this blog instead of studying for my last exam tomorrow morning? You bet I am!
Dear readers, if there's one bizarre phenomena of this last year, it's been the oddness of my working status. It seems that every time I have a job offer (be it as a waitress, teacher, or public health-er) I have been offered numerous opportunities at once, with dry spells in between. Well, this last week has not been a dry spell, and don't you know it's right before I leave for the States (hooray!). Still, things are looking up for next year.
After months of barely a peep from the Learning Network (they're busy folks and I wasn't exactly seeking them out either), I was asked to do a research gig for about 40 hours that would actually pay me. Unfortunately, it's over the next couple of months so they'll be looking for another candidate. My friend Bob also recommended me for a fieldworker job. It's one of those jobs where they reeeeeally want you to speak Afrikaans or Xhosa, so I probably would have never gone for it on my own. They called me recently to say that they are interested in me for a slightly higher level position that sounds a bit more like coordinating fieldwork rather than doing it. I have an interview on Friday where I have to do a three minute presentation. We'll see how it goes. They explained that they have some positions where only English is required, so it sounds like a possibility.
Alright, I might be a just a little too proud of this last one, but you have to understand that after MONTHS of not getting even close to working in sexual or reproductive health, even a glimmer of hope is amazing. An email went out to the MPH students requesting a student to work for about 40 hours with Landon Myer to edit a document. It's in the heart of finals, so I knew most people probably wouldn't respond. Maybe I shouldn't have either, but the work started when I only had one exam left, and I figured I could balance it all. I've heard amazing things about Landon and his research, and I figured if editing was a way to get in the door, I would jump at it. He does a lot of HIV research, but more recently has also been focusing on IUDs, which I am completely obsessed with.
I met with Landon, who is awesome, discovered that when you're editing a giant NIH grant it is COMPLETELY possible to spend 40 hours editing it, if not more, and that because it is such "menial" work, he was willing to may me r20 (about 3 USD) extra per hour of the normal student rate to do it. I've been working hard, making sure everything is as perfect as possible to make a good first impression. Things are hectic with the grant right now (due Thursday!) but on Friday he talked to me a little about my interests and said that we should sit down and talk about future work after the grant is finished, because there are a lot of exciting projects coming up next year. I really really hope something works out, because his research is exactly the kind of stuff I'd like to be a part of!
Also, I am officially done at Bella. Still love the food and the people, but I really want to focus my energies more on projects such as the above. Here and there I've been doing the breast pump thing and, if I haven't mentioned, I also did a brief gig with Stellenbosch University doing some data extraction, which was my first official paid public health job here.
So, things are looking up! Even doing the editing over the last few days (which I strangely enjoy, by the way), it felt so wonderful to have work to do again. It was tiring, but fulfilling. I'm looking forward to more of that next year!
Yes, I almost through finals! Earlier this week I took Health, Policy, and Planning, which I actually felt I did quite well on. Evidence Based Healthcare was a bit scary at first--the format of the exam was definitely not how I studied, but after freaking out for five minutes I read the questions and realized I knew how to answer them. I actually finished about half an hour early, even with checking it over. Tomorrow, I have Economics of Health Systems. It was my first ever economics course and entirely new material for me. I learned a TON and really enjoyed it, but I think at this point my getting a solid B is inevitable. In a way, that is freeing because I feel less stressed studying for it. The chances of my doing miraculously well and pulling out a high A on the exam are slim, but I certainly know enough that I don't expect anything below a B. In a little over 24 hours, I will officially be done with my first year of grad school!
Well, I'd better put my money where my mouth is and go do some studying. Oh, and Thomas is great--in a couple of hours he'll be getting home from his last Nigeria trip. Having him home once a week has been AMAZING. Let's hope there are some more gigs like that in our future.
Love!
Kristen
