Who I Am

I'm Jeff Malins, a former faculty member who experienced research drift firsthand. I went from studying cross-linguistic differences in language processing during my PhD to running a pediatric reading lab as faculty, and eventually into cardiovascular AI, a field I never expected to find myself in.

The drift happened gradually, through reasonable decisions about funding, relationships, and practicality. As a faculty member during the pandemic, I juggled online teaching, tried to grow a research program, and supported my lab through constant uncertainty. I often felt stretched too thin, pulled in multiple directions, and unsure how to prioritize what mattered most.

Transitioning to industry brought a different set of challenges: entering a new field, translating a nonlinear career into a coherent story, and learning to navigate a very different kind of work culture.

These experiences are what drew me to this work. I now write and speak about research drift, career identity, and what it means to build an intentional research life, and I work with postdocs and early-career researchers navigating similar transitions.