- Joined
- Jul 29, 2017
- Messages
- 50
- Reaction score
- 3
Hi,
I have joined a lab at my university since spring (few hours), but I have worked 20+ in the lab during this summer, and 40+ hours for the first several weeks before classes started. This is my first lab and never had prior experience
I'm about to be or close to being fired and wanted to discuss the situation.
My mentor or graduate student who i work for is angry about my performance and does not like repeating things. He believes using the lab equipment is logic. He said that I did not meet his expectations, and repeated some mistakes few to several times, such as forgetting to fully cap the head of nuclease-free water, sucking liquid into the pipet (happened only two times), not fully covering my samples on ice, lying about what I can get done, and my hours are less and not good. He also states that I should have kept detailed notes and that he told me to take them. He blames me for one or two steps out of 100 that I forget or have not written down. But I have understood this point and tried to be better at note taking.
Personally, I felt that I was committing enough time and even wanted to do more hours, especially over the weekend. I did not know he wouldn't like me to work on the weekends and that it was not possible. He said if I was in your shoes I would be feeling that I failed. And that is a bit hurtful.
He said now he is putting me on a "trial" and if he is still unhappy, he will fire me.
I have cut food, fed his mice, and did many qPCRs. I have learned well after doing the techniques several times. However, in the lab we are doing several different experiments at once and its hard for me to know the steps and do them without thinking or error. Jumping from experiment to experiment is hard for me without doing them three times from scratch on my own and after one month be expected to remember and know to carry out the experiments.
He said, he expected me to be able to carry over his experiment once I came to lab and I'm not at that point. And that he has admitted that he has low patience and can get angry quickly.
He also pointed out that I got a scholarship for doing a research project over the summer and that he is not happy that I'm getting paid for this because of my performance. The lab is not paying me and this was an outside scholarship.
My goal is not to make him unhappy but satisfied and trusting. I want to please him and maybe a year later obtain a LOR. I wanted to do an honor thesis under him, and do love the project. I just don't know what to do at this point. The previous day went fine and did not yell at me after we had a reconciliation with one of the lab staff. But I'm now in trial phase.
Should I look for another lab in the same department and quit shortly after? or give it another chance since he has trained me and I have shadowed him for the past two months. I feel he would lose the most if I leave. Additionally, a lab staff told me another person was working for him and it did not work.
I have joined a lab at my university since spring (few hours), but I have worked 20+ in the lab during this summer, and 40+ hours for the first several weeks before classes started. This is my first lab and never had prior experience
I'm about to be or close to being fired and wanted to discuss the situation.
My mentor or graduate student who i work for is angry about my performance and does not like repeating things. He believes using the lab equipment is logic. He said that I did not meet his expectations, and repeated some mistakes few to several times, such as forgetting to fully cap the head of nuclease-free water, sucking liquid into the pipet (happened only two times), not fully covering my samples on ice, lying about what I can get done, and my hours are less and not good. He also states that I should have kept detailed notes and that he told me to take them. He blames me for one or two steps out of 100 that I forget or have not written down. But I have understood this point and tried to be better at note taking.
Personally, I felt that I was committing enough time and even wanted to do more hours, especially over the weekend. I did not know he wouldn't like me to work on the weekends and that it was not possible. He said if I was in your shoes I would be feeling that I failed. And that is a bit hurtful.
He said now he is putting me on a "trial" and if he is still unhappy, he will fire me.
I have cut food, fed his mice, and did many qPCRs. I have learned well after doing the techniques several times. However, in the lab we are doing several different experiments at once and its hard for me to know the steps and do them without thinking or error. Jumping from experiment to experiment is hard for me without doing them three times from scratch on my own and after one month be expected to remember and know to carry out the experiments.
He said, he expected me to be able to carry over his experiment once I came to lab and I'm not at that point. And that he has admitted that he has low patience and can get angry quickly.
He also pointed out that I got a scholarship for doing a research project over the summer and that he is not happy that I'm getting paid for this because of my performance. The lab is not paying me and this was an outside scholarship.
My goal is not to make him unhappy but satisfied and trusting. I want to please him and maybe a year later obtain a LOR. I wanted to do an honor thesis under him, and do love the project. I just don't know what to do at this point. The previous day went fine and did not yell at me after we had a reconciliation with one of the lab staff. But I'm now in trial phase.
Should I look for another lab in the same department and quit shortly after? or give it another chance since he has trained me and I have shadowed him for the past two months. I feel he would lose the most if I leave. Additionally, a lab staff told me another person was working for him and it did not work.