Narratives in (in)authenticity: the early career academic

The transition from PhD student to Early Career Academic (ECA) is a difficult one: from student to researcher, learner to teacher. For ECAs, the cultivation of this new identity can be challenging: how do we present ourselves as ‘academics’ and ‘successful’, whilst being authentic? What is ‘authentic’? And what would be more ‘successful’? I explore these concepts through two storytelling methodologies: an autoethnographic account of my experiences transitioning from PhD student to ECA, and the fictional account of Erudite, a newly appointed Professor at the Academy for the Arcane Arts. Stories, both autobiographical and fictional, are imperative in respect of sense-making; they advance personal understanding and critical reflexivity.