In Episode 9, Dr. Allen Roda shares his winding career path in and out of academia, and reflects with wisdom on how he weaved various professional (and personal) experiences together into a cohesive life of his own design, currently working as CEO and Editor-in-Chief of the company Dissertation Editor. You can find him on social media @allenroda and @disesrtation_editor, and be sure to check out his book -- PhDone: A Professional Dissertation Editor's Guide to Finishing Your Doctoral Thesis and Earning Your PhD -- anywhere books are sold, and at the following link: https://www.dissertation-editor.com/phdone-book

In Episode 8, Dr. Joe Stubenrauch discusses the series of revelations that led him to choose a life reflective of long-hushed inner goals. Because he left a tenured faculty position in the history department of Baylor University to do so, Dr. Stubenrauch's candid story of leaving academia is rendered especially poignant-- and reminds us that life is once, so we might as well head in the direction toward whatever makes us happy.

In Episode Seven, Dr. Jackie Coley discusses how graduate school fed into unhelpful perfectionistic habits that, upon confronting, eventually inspired her current career as a confidence coach. In addition to providing insight into how we can turn adversity into opportunity through retraining our mindset, Dr. Coley also shares insight into her tenure as a scientist first as an undergrad in North Carolina, and eventually as a doctoral student at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City.

In our sixth episode, Dr. Oscar Pocasangre shares his journey from his undergraduate student days "at a small school in Connecticut" through both a Master's and PhD at Columbia University, studying an array of subjects that culminated in his research on crime and politics in Latin America. While academia ultimately could not offer him what he realized he wanted out of life (seriously: it's nice being able to choose where to live!), he recalls his time as a PhD student fondly, reminding us that life is full of twists and turns, but it never fails to lead us exactly where we need to be.

In Episode 5, Doctor of Philosophy Brian Leahy explains how he fell in love with physics, the surprisingly playful aspects of scientific and mathematical work,  how his research influenced his perception of the physical world-- and how, despite missing certain aspects of academia, his transition into industry has ultimately allowed him to learn for fun again.

In Episode 4, Brian Rutledge, who holds a PhD in African History from Cornell University, shares his unique trajectory from skateboarding, working at a smoothie shop, and barely passing high school up thorugh community college, a Master's Degree, and a PhD in the Ivy League --never losing sight of how to use his education (or his impeccable sense of humor) along the way.

In Episode 3, Ashley Ruba -- PhD in Developmental Psychology from the University of Washington, and post-academic social media influencer -- shares her successes within academia, the grim odds at professorship she faced in spite of her credentials, and how she parlayed her talents into a career she finds both intellectually and personally gratifying. Edit: I said that Dr. Ruba's PhD was in Cognitive Psychology in the intro, when in fact it was Developmental Psychology.

In Episode 2, we hear the inspiring story of Benjamin Nigra, an archaeologist who earned his degree at the University of California Los Angeles, and how confronting the reality about his career aspirations in academia ultimately led to fulfillment on the other side-- thanks, as we'll hear, to his contagious optimism and good ol' fashioned work ethic.

In our first episode of Academic Defectors, host Jillian Marshall discusses her journey into and out of academia -- from an AB in East Asian Languages and Civilizations at the University of Chicago to a PhD in Musicology (with a focus on ethnomusicology) at Cornell University -- and her transition into a creative, artistic life.