Are You an Academic Questioning Your Career?
​​Are you feeling lost in your academic role? Wondering if higher education is still the right fit? Torn between staying and finding a way to make this work versus looking for an alternative career? Not quite sure what to do or where to start?
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I work with overwhelmed academics to help them manage the endless treadmill of competing demands so that they can reconnect with their identity and purpose.
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I get it. I've been there. I worked in higher education for over 20 years. I would love to help you move from that place of energy-sapping uncertainty to career fulfillment. It really is possible and is a much better place to be.
Do you...
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Feel burned out by endless work demands?
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Miss family time to catch up on emails?
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Work the evenings and weekends as standard?
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Struggle to identify what changes would actually make a difference?
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Wonder if you can keep doing this for the rest of your working life?
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You are not alone.
Four out of five academics work beyond their contracted hours. Did you know that burnout in academia is second only to medicine? We face huge uncertainties about the future structure of HE in the UK. There are redundancies and restructures going on, creating job insecurity and leaving many wondering what they could do if they weren’t working in academia. Having invested in your own education, career advancement, and research, you are probably in a place where you never imagined you would be. I'm here to tell you that it really is possible to work out what you want and how to get there! The issues you are facing can put you at a difficult crossroads. Do you navigate a path out of academia altogether - joining those who've found life beyond the metrics, or reshape your career to focus on what actually matters to you - be it teaching, research, or something you are brilliant at, but yet to discover?
Working with me, you'll can expect to achieve:
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A comprehensive mapping of where you are now, and where you want to be.
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Clarity on what matters to you both professionally and personally.
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Practical tools to set work boundaries that actually stick in academic environments.
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Strategies to protect your wellbeing while still delivering quality work.
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Emotional support and understanding.
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Confidence to make decisions to support your future personal and professional life.
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Whatever your path, you don't have to figure it out alone. After 20 years in higher education, I understand the unique pressures you face - and the freedom that exists when you dare to reconsider what work should look like.
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Book a call with me for an informal chat.
Testimonials
Meet Wendy
I have worked in academia for over 20 years in roles spanning from research and teaching assistant, to associate director, including strategic leadership roles, line management, and research leadership.
I have worked part time and full time, online and offline. I understand the academic landscape, I have been there. I understand the competing demands, the endless emails, drafts to read, strategies to comment on, and reports to write.
I understand that fitting in your research can be almost impossible, and that it is easy to slip in to that space where all you do is work and sleep. I also know that there is a way out and I am confident I can support you to get there.
Having worked in UK higher education for over 20 years, in a career spanning teaching, research, and leadership roles, I then stepped out to pursue a career in coaching. I know... What it's like to have given everything to a career you're then secretly questioning The cost of trying to make yourself fit into a role that isn't the right shape for you How easy it is to lose yourself in an all-consuming career and tie your identity to your job title What it's like to miss your child's school pickup because you're helping an upset student How it feels to work on emails while sitting next to your sick two-year-old The exhaustion of trying to find another way on your own The feeling of uncertainty when you transition from your PhD or into a leadership role Since sharing my experience, I've realised how many academics are unhappily trying to navigate their way through higher education with very little career support or recognition of the many ways their strengths and skills can be used effectively. That's what I'm now committed to doing, because it really is possible to design a career that enables you to live a life you love!
Work with Wendy
Pivot
For academics at career crossroads considering major change
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This six-month programme suits you if you're unclear about your career direction. If your head is spinning with conflicting thoughts about the best way forward, you don't know whether to stay in academia or leave, or what to do instead if you leave, this programme is for you.
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Package includes:
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Initial psychological assessment to identify stress patterns and work-life imbalance
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2 x 90 minute sessions
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4 x 60 minute sessions taken at your own pace over the semester
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Identity work: separating self from academic role
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Practical tools for managing competing demands
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All resources and materials
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Career pathway mapping (within or beyond academia)
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Deeper psychological work on patterns driving overwork
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Support through transitions and difficult conversations
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Price: £799 (Payment Plans are Available).
Reset
For academics experiencing overwork and seeking boundaries
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This shorter programme may suit you if you're looking to optimise your current role, transitioning to a new role or leadership, or want to create more balance across your life. You may have ideas about what you want to do but aren't sure how to get there, including how to overcome self-doubt that's getting in your way.
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Package includes:
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Initial psychological assessment to identify stress patterns and work-life imbalance
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4 x 60-minute sessions taken at your own pace over the semester
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Personalised workload analysis and boundary-setting plan
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Identity work: separating self from academic role
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Practical tools for managing competing demands
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Monthly email check-ins and support
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All resources and materials​
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Price: £499 (Payment Plans are Available).
Evolve
For academics at a point of change, either personally or professionally. This may include becoming a parent, navigating promotion, starting work at a new university, or moving to a different country.
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This programme will suit you if you would like a solid plan in place at this time of change, if you’d like to evaluate where you are at, and what strengths you can bring. Due to the nature of the work, you can take the sessions at your own pace.
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Package includes:
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Initial psychological assessment to identify stress patterns and work-life imbalance
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2 x 90 minute sessions
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10 x 60 minute sessions taken at your own pace
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Identity work: separating self from academic role
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Practical tools for managing competing demands
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All resources and materials
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Career pathway mapping (within or beyond academia)
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Deeper psychological work on patterns driving overwork
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Support through transitions and difficult conversations
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Price: £1499 (Payment Plans are Available).
Work with Wendy
Coaching is about you. It's about:
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Working out where you are now – what's working and what isn't
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Identifying what you need in your life and career to feel fulfilled
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Exploring the many possible routes that could get you there
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Filtering these to find the best fit for you at this time
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Developing a practical strategy to implement your plans
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Coaching packages are designed by someone who understands UK higher education from the inside, having worked as an academic for over 20 years from PhD student to Reader.
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It all starts with a no-obligation complimentary 30-minute call so you can tell me about your current situation, I can tell you how I work, and we can decide if we're a good fit.