tooting my own horn....

[VJ]

Reviewers have been assigned; theoretically they have 6 weeks to return their comments. Might get tight with the next scientific council...

[Dr Mordrid]

Good luck!!

[VJ]

Thanks!

The institute just sent the announcement that the next scientific council will be on 26 of October. The time given to reviewers is 6 weeks, and usually it is extended to 8 weeks (it can be more, in one case it took over 4 months). While my case looks very solid (compared to other habilitations that I have seen approved, when I look at the number and the objective quality measures of the publications), it is still unrealistic to expect all reviews in 4 weeks. Looks like I will miss out by a few weeks, which basically means that there will be a delay of about half a year, if not more - unless they manage to pull some rabbit out of a hat.

Either way, it is completely out of my hands.

[UtwigMU]

Does it mean you get to stay in Spain 6 more months?

[VJ]

No, it is fully independent of that.

I went on unpaid leave of absence in Poland, and had planned to return to my old position after the post-doc in Spain finishes. It just means I won't be able to start a higher position, which is a bit of a shame as this higher position has some benefits (slightly higher salary, full freedom to work at home, ability for phd students, ...). Still, most of those can probably be arranged informally if the comments are positive (the council decision is then just a formality).
It also could have made it easier for me to start teaching classes the next semester - not sure if that would happen, and not sure I would want it to happen so fast. One thing is that another institute was interested in me, and I was thinking of going part-time there and part-time at my old institute but I don't know how this delay changes matters. They were interested because of my research profile and publication history, so it is very possible it does not change anything and they would hire me as it is.

[UtwigMU]

By all means go for part-time other institute. Working for single employer is monopsony (dependent on single buyer of your labour). Working for multiple institutions gives benefits of:
- redundancy - if one place goes under or no longer needs you, you still have income
- more experience - you get different experience at another place
- more contacts and larger social network, you also become a node through which information passes
- more money, yes you have a bit of friction at both ends but you have to look after own interest - no one else will.

I took a week off leave (summer vacation) to teach IT course for another company two weeks ago and I also teach Linux webinar I created which is very popular - people are actively writing emails saying my webinar is great.

[VJ]

How things can change...
The scientific council in October has passed (which was too early for me), but it also came too early for them to settle some other things, so an extra scientific council is scheduled for the middle of December!

Meanwhile, the first review from an externally selected reviewer arrived yesterday and it is positive (very, if I may add... well, it is a tooting my own horn thread, so I'm adding it ). However, I wrongly thought that the reviewers had 6-8 weeks; as it turns out they have up to 2.5 months. Theoretically this means they still have time, although the secretary of the council told me she will send reminders out: their term started near the end of September, so the new date of the scientific council almost exactly coincides with their deadline. It would be nice if they would really respect the deadline; I'd hate to miss out on account of the reviewers sending the report a few days late as that would delay things with half a year or so.

So, there again is a chance I may receive the habilitation this year.

[Dr Mordrid]

Excellent!!

[VJ]

A second reviewer seems to be in the process of reviewing: he contacted the institute as he had issues opening the files on the CD (it is just the same as what is on paper - legal requirement to give it both on paper and on CD). We sent him a link to google drive and that seems to have solved the problem. So at least it means he started! Still hoping for mid-December (the third reviewer was sent a reminder).

[VJ]

Ok, it won't be this year. The third reviewer has not sent the comments yet, and ahead of the meeting of the council (this Friday), the three reviewers should have their own meeting. So now way that will happen before Friday. Most likely the next meeting is February-March (due to changes in the law, the scientific council meets more frequently), so now we are hoping for that one...

A second issue that the central committee will hold a half year break from April, but that central committee needs to confirm the council decision. So now we really need to urge the reviewers to be on time for March, or the whole thing will suffer half a year delay.

[VJ]

New update: all three reviews are in AND a meeting of the reviewers and commission is scheduled for Thursday! So we are well ahead of the scientific council. Thursdays meeting is the most important now - the rest are formalities - but given that all reviews are positive, no problems are expected.

[Dr Mordrid]

Excellent!!

[UtwigMU]

Congratulations!

To toot my horn:
I doubled the revenue of my freelance side business (IT consulting, teaching IT courses) in 2018 over 2017. Not much - close to minimum wage here on the side on top of my full time salary.

For the first time since the great recession I have more cash and savings than debt - also not much but I'm over the cusp.

[VJ]

For the first time since the great recession I have more cash and savings than debt - also not much but I'm over the cusp.

Procedure passed. Barring some minor editorial comments on the book, there were no comments at all. The vote was unanimous, so the commission allows for a habilitation to be granted to me. This will formally be done on the next scientific council, near the end of the month.

From that point on, I'll have much more freedom in work and I already have some plans on what to do next.

[Umfriend]

Congrats! So what are the plans?