Leaps and bounds

When I was at Gregg's before Christmas I applied to a new career mentoring program for female PhD students at the university of Basel. It's called "Antelope" after the graceful but watch-out-she's-got-horns ungulates that are distinguished primarily in that they are "neither cattle, sheep, buffalo, bison, nor goats," according to Wikipedia. Flattering! Wikipedia also notes, in regards to domesticity, that "Domestication...requires certain traits...that antelope do not typically display." That part might be a good description for most female PhD students.

But I digress. This week I heard that I've been selected for the program, which "helps female doctoral students systematically plan their careers [and] prepares participants for future leadership and management tasks, [and] is exclusive, concise and free of charge." Hurray for being a girl! As my brothers like to point out, a major side benefit to being a girl is free stuff. In this case, free advice, lunches, and a career mentor who is a senior executive at Novartis. I don't know who it is yet, but I hope it's someone sensible. 

This is all a big improvement over Tuesday, even considering the comparison to a goat.