Dr. Vahdat serves as deputy cancer center director, section chief medical oncology and interim section chief of hematology at Dartmouth-Hitchcock’s Norris Cotton Cancer Center in New Hampshire.
These are her three key lessons:
- Insisting on seeing the financials of your payment is very important, but when you do, you should follow the chain of command and talk to the right people.
- The glass ceiling in academic medicine is strong, which can be a shock after medical school, which is largely gender-balanced. Dr. Vahdat found it hard to move up the ranks, despite her elite qualifications.
- Don’t assume just because leadership is female that they will be better. The qualities and values in a boss are far more important than their gender, she says.
In a final word of advice, she said: “I would encourage young faculty to look at the entire picture — I believe this represents the level of commitment the institution has to your personal and professional development.”
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