In the last weeks, I have been asked the above question quite a lot of
times. Two weeks ago, I was supposed to be in Canada. In 2009, after
the lack of opportunities in Spain, and the scary forecasts for the
economy in Spain (with unemployment rates reaching 20%), I started to
look for research and university teaching positions abroad. I was
lucky, and I found a postdoc in Canada, for three years, in a top
research group.
I was very happy for that opportunity, and looking forward to starting
to work there. I was having a hard time in Spain, because I did not
manage to get "accreditation", and Canada was the right place to gain
a lot of experience and opening new future
opportunities. Accreditation in Spain is an official (and painful
and hyper-bureaucratic) validation process that every candidate for an
university position must go through before being able to apply for
positions. The process is tough because you have to collect a lot of
documents, and you need a lot of teaching and research experience to
pass it. With my CV, it was difficult to get the accreditation, and my
estimations were that I needed at least two more years doing research
to get it. That's why the opportunity in Canada came in the right
moment.
However, last November I got the accreditation. I applied with the
idea of a last try before going to Canada. And it turned out to be
successful. Having got the accreditation, I started to apply to every
position that was open in Madrid. After a couple of months, I finally
got a position in a small university in Madrid, which is very teaching
oriented, although it is starting new research and doctorate
programs. That means that I will probably need some time to continue
doing research, because I have to adapt to this new university, and I
have lot of teaching duties. But I think that in the following months
I will manage to find the way to combine teaching and research.
So, where am I now? Well, right now I am on a plane, heading Brussels,
to attend FOSDEM (the magic of my new blogging system is that I can
add posts offline, and synchronize my blog once I am connected). And
in the following months (probably years), I will stay in
Madrid. Hopefully, my current position will be long-term, maybe even
permanent.
It has been a hard decision. Going to Canada for research is a life
changing experience, and I have probably dropped a lot of future
opportunities after this decision. But in the personal side, this is
the option that currently makes it easier to balance my professional
and personal life.
I have not spread the word till now because in the middle of this deep
meditation, Rocío and I have had to face some personal issues. Her
mother suffered a heart disease and needed surgery, and we have been
very busy (I have been picking her sister's kids from school,
preparing lunch for them and doing a lot of other fun
tasks). Fortunately, she is now all right, and recovering fast. Should
I have gone to Canada when I planned to, Rocío would have had to deal
with all this alone. So in spite of all my doubts, and also in spite
of being that kind of decisions that no matter what option you choose,
you are probably choosing wrongly, at least for now, it has been the
right decision.
En marzo comienza el 
