ZZ，所谓新牛校KAUST的真相 [复制链接]

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发表于 2010-1-11 11:55:02 |显示全部楼层

Re: kaust postdocs
« Reply #20 on: December 29, 2009, 05:47:39 PM »

Dear Mathdoc,

Interestingly enough, it was KAUST that did break the relation with Cambridge U. (UK) and Imperial. For so far my spokesmen know these relations are still not restored and no mention of them anymore at the KAUST website.

I was (note the past tense) coming to KAUST to participate in the adventure of setting up a new university. In my field, structural biology, there seemed a wealth of opportunities for research. No shortage of equipment from the best manufacturers, apparently no shortage of funding. I was totally prepared to go through the first years of setting up a new lab. Money is not a motivating factor for me as long as I am paid in the same range as my peers. I am young enough to not have serious problems with my pension funds like some of the other faculty members. My research plans are clear and should be achievable in an average lab.

What in fact, looking back, totally upset me is the total chaos in the KAUST organization, the absolute impossibility to "get things done" in a normal fashion, i.e. within a certain timeframe and with proper craft manship. Ordering chemicals and supplies and small equipment for the lab proved to be impossible. If something was finally ordered, delivery times were uncertain and most of the time the packets arrived opened, incomplete or broken. No one seems to care, no one takes his job anywhere near serious, everything is done "the day after tomorrow". KAUST IT is a joke, they cannot keep the labs network running reliably for more than a week, let alone getting any decent Intenet connectivity. I deal with large (> 10GB) datasets sometimes and to get these into KAUST is an exercise in patience. I am fully prepared to work hard but I don't think I should spent my energy on a malfunctioning organization like KAUST. Why do you have all expensive Macs and laser printers in the library if no one did think of ordering paper?

The feeling that became stronger and stronger was "Why am I trying to do this, no one cares anyway". Neither the Aramco people I tried to deal with nor the rest of the faculty seemed to care-for them, being there, having built this large university seemed enough, if research is done (and what the outcome is) is apparently irrelevant. I felt like a player in a drama with all too expensive scenery. This university is obviously a showcase for HM the King, to show that Saudi Arabia soon will rank among the leading scientific nations in the world. My apologies, Your Majesty, I am not your puppet on a string.

What finally tipped the scale was the discrepancy between the promises before signing the contract and the actual reality. I am now referring to the housing situation. It might be cool for master students to live in a 5-star hotel for a while, if someone says "your house will be ready when you arrive" I take that seriously. Then, moving into a house where the ceiling tiles drop on your head when you slam the door, rats coming into the kitchen through not covered holes, mould in the bedrooms is more than my wife can handle. Reading the last posts about the flood on campus in November we were glad to be out already.

Being a master student and having a good time is completely different than trying to do research, it seems. I noticed that a significant portion, more than 1/3, of the students that started at KAUST on September seem to have decided already not to return after the winter break. If that would be the case I hope it sets the KAUST faculty and staff thinking how to retain and attrack new generations of students.

I am glad that I am safely back at my old university. Luckily my position was still unfilled so I could more or less resume where I left off, having lost only a few months.

I sincerely wish everyone at KAUST much success in their endeavours.

Arjen

（http://chronicle.com/forums/index.php/topic,61199.15.html）

ZZ，所谓新牛校KAUST的真相 [复制链接]

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