Category Archives: Career paths

Career paths

Why scientists should communicate hope whilst avoiding hype

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How we communicate our research is important in maintaining public trust in science

By Eileen Parkes

“Exciting new line of attack for aggressive breast cancer”

I read that headline recently. “Fantastic” I thought, quickly followed by, “How have I missed this?”. My disappointment as I read the article (the new treatment had only been shown to work in cells in the lab, not in humans) turned to anger as I thought what someone with breast cancer might think whilst reading this. Someone who had coped with bad news and difficult treatments, hoping for a cure only to be disappointed again and again by overblown headlines.

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Lowering the stakes on exams could help close the gender gap in STEM classes

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Women tend to underperform in introductory STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) courses, but tweaking how courses are graded could help change that.

By Diana Crow

In many undergrad STEM courses, high-stakes exams — such as mid-terms and finals — determine as much as 60-70% of the student’s overall grade. However, this emphasis on tests may be inadvertently putting some students at a disadvantage.

An emphasis on high-stakes exams at undergraduate level may be a contributor to the gender gap

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How could universities and funders improve the situation for postdoctoral scientists?

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What the research system needs to be doing to improve the world that postdocs face

By David Bogle

I’ve already written about how PhDs can prepare for and decide whether or not they should pursue a postdoc. Here, I will discuss what more universities and funding agencies should be doing as stakeholders in training and employing researchers.

Universities must be doing more to ensure the postgraduate experience is a positive one

Employers, both at universities and elsewhere, need a range of sophisticated research skills at their institutions. Early career researchers have already shown themselves to be incredibly talented; and society needs them to drive innovation in the economy. This is all the more important in the context of an ongoing war for talent. Researchers must have the opportunity to develop as ‘creative critical autonomous intellectual risk takers’ for the sake of society. Continue reading →

What should you get from being a postdoc?

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And what should you look for when finding a postdoc position?

By David Bogle

You are coming towards the end of your PhD – so what next? There are many options open to you; one obvious one is to apply for a postdoc position. You should think carefully about what you want to do and not just pursue this through inertia. I have supervised many engineering PhDs and some postdocs in my 32 years as an academic. As Head of University College London’s Doctoral School, I oversee the environment and policy for 6000 doctoral candidates and 3200 postdocs.

Many can find good reasons to do a postdoc. {credit} Guy H/ Flickr CC-BY-2.0 {credit}

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Want to find investors for your research idea? Change the way you pitch

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A fundraising pitch involves vastly different style and substance than a scientific talk. Entrepreneurial scientists and engineers need to understand and manage the differences.

In a funding pitch, complexity is your enemy — no matter how significant the science

By David Rubenson, Wendie Johnston and Ned Perkins.

Many scientists hope to translate their discoveries into something useful and financially profitable. A biologist, for example, might hope to create a new line of health care products. Many use special grants or family resources to establish small companies. However, given the enormous challenges in the healthcare market, virtually every nascent enterprise needs outside funding; whether from wealthy “angel investors,” venture capital, or investment from large pharmaceutical and device developers. Continue reading →

How product management could be a route out of academia for PhDs and postdocs

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This job makes great use of a scientific skill set and is criminally underrated, says Issa Moody.

Let’s face it. Job prospects for PhD candidates and postdoctoral scientists are dismal. In 2012, a study on the biomedical research workforce, conducted by the National Institutes of Health and pictorialized by the American Society for Cell Biology, showed that there is a significant number of biology PhDs in the US who have resorted to doing non-science jobs. Those who stay in science face financial penalties: one 2017 Nature Biotechnology study  demonstrated postdocs, on average, forfeit 20% of their earning potential within the first 15 years of completing their PhD program. Continue reading →

Some science and some serendipity

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What at first looks like a setback may be an opportunity in disguise, says Flavia Scialpi

I keep my business cards in the top drawer of my desk at work. They are in two bulky boxes and take up a lot of space, but I like them there because I can see them every time I pull out a pen. They are a memento of how very often you can’t foresee where an opportunity lies – and therefore to seize each and every one of them.

I have been in academia for almost half my life, and I am now engaged in my first position in industry at Synpromics, a biotech company. It is the first time in my professional career that I hold a position that requires and provides business cards.

New Accomodation at Roslin Innovation Centre

Scialpi’s new Accomodation at Roslin Innovation Centre

A few years ago I thought I wouldn’t have any chance to land a job in industry. Nor was I very interested in it, to be honest; I was content with academic research, greatly enjoying the highs and bitterly venting about the lows. I went for a well-trodden path; I got my PhD in Italy, where I’m from, and then ventured abroad for a postdoc. I felt the world was my oyster and I found a second home in beautiful Scotland. Continue reading →

More to science: working as a Research Funding Manager

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This piece was originally published on the BioMed Central blog network, part of Springer Nature.

Pixabay

There’s more to science than being a scientist! Next in our ‘Science > Careers’ series Anne Helme explains more about the path that led to her role as Research Funding Manager at Cancer Research UK.

Dana Berry. Originally published 26 May 2016. Continue reading →