Aurélien Chuard, Ph.D

Post Doctoral Researcher
Boston College
Viral Mimicry seeker
Viral Insulins Project

[Sarah McMenamin, she/her @skmcmena]

Apply for our PhD program in Boston!
It's great here and we take training and community really seriously.
https://t.co/7JcBfwQ5Sx

[Andrew Akbashev @Andrew_Akbashev]

Victor Ambros was denied tenure at Harvard.
But he was not a usual PI.

The Harvard Crimson describes:

1⃣ He took an especially hands-on role in mentorship:

“Duan recalled the experience of arriving in the U.S. for his Ph.D. as a non-native English speaker. Ambros spent time personally mentoring Duan in how to write and give presentations in English, which Duan said proved “very helpful.”

Duan said Ambros also taught him how to believe in himself as a scientist.

“Victor is just an intensely curious person, and that curiosity is infectious. You can’t help but be really curious around him because he’s always asking interesting questions and being provoking.” - H. Scott Silverman.

2⃣ He did not step away from lab work to focus on the administrative work and funding, unlike many other professors.

“Victor is NOT a very typical PI because he has his own bench,” Duan said. “He wants to stay closer to the science. He would work side by side with all the other people who were actively doing the same.”

📍Why tenure was denied?

David Baltimore’s opinion (Caltech president, 1975 Nobel laureate):

“The denial of tenure was consistent with Harvard’s hiring junior faculty and then not giving them tenure. The fate of junior faculty at the University was to teach and conduct research — but ultimately be replaced by new junior faculty before they could rise through the ranks. It just underlines the foolishness of that approach to building a great department.”

After Harvard, Victor Ambros moved to Dartmouth and then the University of Massachusetts.

📍 My view:

Tenure track is rarely about with Nobel-level work.

At most universities, tenure requires metrics to be fulfilled. This also includes recommendation letters from peers that should be excellent.

As a result, most professors are VERY careful during tenure track (outside the US too). They avoid risky research and focus on metrics (more papers, more funding, more students, etc). Too much at stake.

The problem is -
Every university wants to have a Nobel laureate but uses a metrics-based system to filter people out.

Instead of encouraging their young faculty members to pursue risky & groundbreaking research, most departments urge them to focus on other things.

❗️ Basically:
Tenure = something feasible, doable, countable
Nobel Prize = once thought infeasible but achieved

I think this gap is what many young scientists are so upset about.

Metrics are great for business, but in science it should be used with great care.

#science #AcademicChatter #chemtwitter

[David Lesbarrères @sudburyfrog]

"Les Français de l’étranger sont les meilleurs ambassadeurs de notre langue" : l'appel de 50 sénateurs https://t.co/XUaP8hzoZK via @MarianneleMag

[Aurélien Chuard, Ph.D @AurelienChuard]

@sailorrooscout @JudsonLab Amazing Tardi !

[Aurélien Chuard, Ph.D @AurelienChuard]

@Xenojacko Bravo to Vania!
Wish het the best and the best for your lab too.
Greetings from Boston

[Aurélien Chuard, Ph.D @AurelienChuard]

@DTP_PhD Congratulations Drake !

[Boston College @BostonCollege]

BC scientist Emrah Altindis received a $2.5 million @NIH grant to advance his research on viral insulins, with implications for cancer treatment. https://t.co/MkWDL1Yu2U

[Jewish Voice for Peace @jvplive]

We are devastated to be marking 150 days of genocide.

As of today, 30,631 people, including 12,000 children, have been murdered by the Israeli military.

We will always bear witness. We will never forget. Ceasefire NOW!

[The Boston Globe @BostonGlobe]

French lawmakers approved a bill that will enshrine a woman’s right to an abortion in the French Constitution during a historic joint session of parliament at the Palace of Versailles on Monday. https://t.co/YdRfs5AMtP

[Aurélien Chuard, Ph.D @AurelienChuard]

Proud of my country 🇫🇷 regarding this great advancement for women's rights and freedom. 🕊️

[Le Monde @lemondefr]

🔴L’inscription de l’IVG dans la Constitution est définitivement adoptée par le Parlement

L’annonce du résutat a été accueillie par une standing ovation dans l’hémicycle.

https://t.co/tu3gfClCdh

[Le Monde in English @LeMonde_EN]

French Sénat approves bill to make abortion a constitutional 'freedom' https://t.co/R6tQi9VS2S

[Aurélien Chuard, Ph.D @AurelienChuard]

@BostonCollege @AltindisL @NIH Congratulations 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Very well deserved!

[Boston College @BostonCollege]

Biology Professor Emrah Altindis (@AltindisL) was awarded a @NIH grant to support his research on viral insulins, with implications for treatment of a range of diseases, including cancer. https://t.co/MkWDL1Yu2U

[Le Monde @lemondefr]

L’Assemblée nationale vote en première lecture l’inscription de l’IVG dans la Constitution https://t.co/VOGAPOv44i

[Alan WACQUIEZ, PhD 🦠🦇🔬🥼🧫🧪 @AWacquiez]

We are still hiring a virologist in our team (NEIDL, Boston university). Do not hesitate, Mohsan is a great mentor/scientist ! 🦠🧫🔬🥼🦠

[Tina Termini @CterminiPhD]

Congrats on a beautiful article by @cellseywoodruff in our lab - out today in @Nature.

Organize your –80 °C freezer to save time and prevent frozen fingertips
https://t.co/4Titt7sn3Z

New @organizolife freezer inventory template just dropped: https://t.co/PoJ8XOgLl4

#TheLabEdit

[Aurélien Chuard, Ph.D @AurelienChuard]

@chr_martina @AltindisL Congratulations to you Martina !
Great work accomplished with you and collaborators.
Blots wins again 😁