Public speaking, mobility and a bit of self-reflection have been the subject of your favourite reads on Naturejobs in June 2015.
What a busy month we’ve had. Again! The Naturejobs blog has published 15 new blog posts, which have been read by thousands of you.
For those that missed them when they first came out: here is a list of the top 10 most popular pieces from Naturejobs and Nature Careers this month. Happy reading!
Although it might not be immediately obvious when you first sign up to becoming a scientist, being a proficient public speaker is very important. You might have to present your work at a conference; you’ll definitely have to defend you PhD work in front of a group of peers. You’ll also have to persuade funders to give you money. In Public speaking: The elevator pitch I was inspired by an elevator pitch I had to give (not science related, unfortunately) to write a few tips on what makes a good pitch.
At the Naturejobs Career Expo in Boston earlier this year, Lauren Celano from Propel Careers gave a great talk based on Job search: Finding your career fit. Every scientist will want to look for a job, eventually, whether it’s in academia or in industry. Celano gave some great tips on how to streamline your search and where to look.
Finding job satisfaction in regulatory affairs is an interview with Leslie Cruz about her transition from academia into this new role, offering some insights into what skills she transferred and what she’s doing now.
Transferable skills: Beyond the bench is a report based on Nina Dudnik’s fantastic talk at the Naturejobs Career Expo in Boston this year. In her talk she highlighted the lessons learned and transferable skills gained when moving away from academia to set up her own non-profit company.
In Career paths: Challenging convention, Diana Cai writes about the keynote speech from the 2015 Naturejobs Career Expo in Boston. Professor Robert Langer shared his career story, covering his science, how he faced adversity and why entrepreneurship is important to science.
This month I had the opportunity to take a sneaky-peak behind the scenes at the European Research Council in Brussels, Belgium. I wanted to find out what happens after scientists hit SUBMIT when sending off their applications for either a Starting or Consolidator grant. The outcome: a podcast on ERC funding: Maximize your chances.
When looking at what career move to make, taking a step back and having an objective look at yourself and your work so far can really help you see what your strengths and weaknesses are. In Reset your brain, Christopher Taylor advocates a bit of self-reflection to help with this process.
Being mobile is becoming a must for early career researchers. But is there a best time to be mobile? And if so, where should you go? And how do you survive? In Mobility: A strategic move, I share stories from scientists have that made mutliple (often more than 5) moves in their career, hoping that it will improve their chances of becoming professors. In most cases it does, but that doesn’t mean it’s an easy path to take.
Things don’t always go according to plan. When a research group is put together, no one can predict the future. Sometimes people decide to leave the group. Or an accident might happen which means that they cannot return. Expect the unexpected is the message in Hannah Hoag’s Research continuity: Be prepared.
Trade talk: Quality wrangler gives a bit more insight into Leslie Cruz’s career in regulatory affairs.
None of these fantastic posts would be possible if it wasn’t for the great contributors we have to both the Naturejobs blog and Nature Careers. So, a special thanks to: Anthea Lacchia, Susan Gelman, Emily Porter, Ada Yee, Diana Cai, Monya Baker, Kendall Powell, Christpher Taylor, Virginia Gewin, Hannah Hoag.
If you’ve got an idea or a story that you would like to share with the Naturejobs blog community, then please get in touch with me, Julie, to pitch your piece. I’m available on email at julie dot gould at nature dot com, and am always happy to receive ideas. I might not get back in touch immediately, but I’ll definitely take a look at what you’ve sent in.
Have a great July everyone!
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