Tattoo Concerns

[uhurulol]

I'm happy to know I'm officially pursuing my PhD. With that said, I'm strongly considering a tattoo this summer before I go.

 

It would simply be text, ideally located on the inside of my forearm, which would make it fairly visible unless I wear long sleeves. Should I have any concerns being a grad student/TA/teacher with a visible tattoo?

 

It would be completely inoffensive and is more of a personal message to myself than anything else. I don't think it would make a difference in getting an academic job down the line but I'd like some thoughts.

 

As an astronomer with a full sleeve on one arm and a Mike Wazowski tattoo on the other, I giggled a little bit at this post.

 

I don't know if it's only in the hard sciences, but it seems to me the field of academia truly doesn't care what you look like.

 

Edit:  I will note that I wear long-sleeves during more important academic events, and I probably will always wear a long-sleeve when TAing.  If I ever become a professor, though... bye bye restraint!

Edited April 22, 2015 by uhurulol

[TattedUp]

I realize this thread is kind of old but I wanted to say that tattoos are probably more common in grad school than most would expect.

I have never had an issue with mine being visible in any way. I also kind of disagree with the poster who said it might hinder your chances when applying for jobs. I'm at a top private school and there are a number of professors with full sleeves here. I should add here that none of them actually wear short sleeve shirts when teaching but still, they walk around in tshirts in the summer when very few people are around.

My personal view is that, while it's important (and totally cool) to be professional and keep them covered when teaching/taing, you shouldn't hesitate to "show them off" if you feel like it. 

In any case, no one really cares and those who judge you would find something else to judge about you even if you didn't have those tats. 

Edited October 30, 2015 by TattedUp

[Boolakanaka]

On 3/29/2015 at 12:07 PM, rising_star said:

This is really field dependent. In my field, a lot of people have tattoos (though probably more women than men), some of which are visible and some of which are not. When I think about my coworkers, I think a few of them have visible tattoos (think inside of the forearm) but very few do. It may limit your options for future employment, which is something to consider.

It should not. My wife is the Director of Medicine for a major hospital, my daughter is a post doc in computational biology at one of the leading programs in the nation, my youngest is an Ivy law school graduate and doing a prestigious federal clerkship, and I'm a prof at an Ivy. Between us there is over 2 dozen tattoos, with some being very large pieces....

[PhDApplicant23]

On 4/13/2015 at 1:44 AM, Fred Garvin said:

I think ScarvesandCardigans put it better than I did.

 

Things like tattoos, nose rings, studs, etc. can be an unintentional distraction from a real intellectual/professional contribution a person is making. Or they could be a deliberate attempt to distract people from the fact that one doesn't have much to offer.

 

Even if the latter isn't true, why risk it?

 

To use an extreme example, Lady GaGa knows how to attract the cameras, but what does she have to say? Bob Dylan is a mumbling hermit who shuns the media, yet people quote his lyrics like scripture.

 

I'm not saying everyone thinks like me or that anyone else should think like me. And please keep in mind that I'm speaking strictly within a professional context.

 

Tattoos are tricky because, unlike our favorite pair of sweats, they can't be left at home when it's time to go to work. I just thought there might be some benefit to presenting an alternative point of view given that the general tone of the thread seems to be one of "Go for it, don't sweat it. A lot of people have them these days. No big deal."

 

In some cases it can be a big deal, thus I think it merits some careful thought. Although not everyone thinks like me, there are some who do, and you likely won't be able to readily identify them. I think the wise thing would be to assume the worst case scenario, then decide if that's a price you're willing to pay for a tattoo.

For the record, Lady Gaga has a lot to say.