Academia

Although I do enjoy teaching, I had never really considered pursuing a career in academia. I have always planned on doing research with a private research firm as I am more interested in the direct applications of research than the basic science research that seems to be more prevalent in academia. However, Dr. Dipboye's discussion of the stability and the freedom of academia has made me stop to reconsider the possibility of an academic career. It is the freedom I am most interested in; it worries me to think that I might have to work on projects I have absolutely no interest in. Unfortunately, there are definite pro's and con's to both career paths, with private industry offering better salary, more applied science, and academia offering more security and freedom.

Expert Witness

Being an expert Human Factors witness seems like very interesting work. I like the fact that it forces you to keep up with the literature in order to maintain your status as "expert". However, it seems like it would be difficult to keep your emotions out of the way of your opinions. For example, if you know someone has committed a crime, and you feel they should be punished for it, but there is some technical human factors issue that can absolve them of their responsibility, it would be difficult to defend that person. Nonetheless, as someone who is always interested in applying my knowledge in new ways, I believe it might be something I would like to do at some point in my career.

Ethics

There seems to be a wide array of ethically questionable situations that we will likely face as human factors psychologists. Regardless of our career path, it seems that all come with their own set of unique ethical concerns that must be dealt with. For those in academia there are all of the issues which revolve around publishing (authorship, plagiarism, etc.), while those in the private sector have to worry more about the politics of business.

Personally, I anticipate working for a private company, but I wouldn't want to work at a company where I didn't feel like I could speak my mind without fear of retribution. Any job that forces me to chose between what I believe is ethically correct and hindering my career is not the job for me.

Career Goals

My most immediate career goal is to begin conducting some form of Neuroergonomics research here at UCF. Ideally, I would like to begin developing and studying EEG-based brain-computer interfaces. I would like to begin working in this area as this is the field I would like to focus on in my career. In my opinion, directly monitoring brain activity to improve the human-technology relationship is the next step in human factors, and technology in general.

After completing my Ph.D, I am considering doing some post-doctorate work with a Neuroscience program, possibly at Duke, as they do some high-level applied research that I think is the beginning of the next wave of technology.

Once I eventually finish my formal education, I would like to work with a private research firm focusing on applied research. Eventually, I would like to start my own research facility. After becoming established as a researcher, I would like to teach undergrad/graduate level courses as an adjunct professor. Although I enjoy teaching (I am teaching an undergraduate Neuropsychology class this semester), I cannot imagine becoming a full-time professor. I would prefer teaching one or two classes every now and then, in order to continue focusing on research, which is my primary interest.