Where TO go?
While most academics don’t get paid as much as they could if working in industry, there are several perks of the position. One of these perks are the occasional breaks in teaching to focus solely on research. Sabbatical leave can be for a semester, a summer, a year, or longer. The break from teaching and administrative duties can come every 7 years, every 10, accumulated at 1 month per year’s work, given after a teaching extra classes, etc. Many professor’s contracts are for 9 months, with summer salary coming from other sources, if at all. Therefore, summer can be a time for a mini-sabbatical. Sabbatical can be spent at home or at a host university or research facility.
We have had 3 sabbatical semesters during my spouse’s career. The first two were spent in CA, where scientists my spouse likes to work with are concentrated. It was great, because my in-laws were there, and it gave our children lots of time with their grandparents, time they wouldn’t have gotten otherwise since we lived across the country, and plane tickets xX are $$$.
This time, with only one kiddo in the house during a grade level we could manage someplace else, we decided to go overseas. My spouse has contacts at universities near Paris, Copenhagen, Geneva, Trieste, and Rome, and while all these would have been amazing places to spend a semester, we decided on Edinburgh, starting on a January 1.
Why Edinburgh?
- School is in English
- Jewish community currently isn’t experiencing a lot of antisemitism
- Everyone speaks English
- Our older child had spent a summer there for a college program and loved it
- I’ve always wanted to go to Scotland
- I wanted to go to the Hebrides Islands
- I wanted to see Puffins
- I wanted to Hill walk and see the Highlands
- The city is known to be incredibly beautiful, almost magical
- The time zone change is the least for my remote work
- We could access other European places easily
- The university offered us money towards our apartment
- Proximity the aurora borealis
- Lochs
- The incredible surfing wave pool that is accessible and welcoming
- I’d heard the people are friendly
- I have Scottish heritage and wanted to see if there is something about place that is passed down across generations
- I love cozy
- I was curious about the rich history of Scotland and the Scots, and Scottish philosophy, art, and writing
Mostly it came down to $ and English, but all the other reasons were compelling. After we made the decision, we started exploring, figuring out housing and schooling, and getting excited!
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