• Question: was working in science a straight pathway or did you experience some set backs?

    Asked by Emily on 21 Jun 2023.
    • Photo: Kamilla Bigos

      Kamilla Bigos answered on 21 Jun 2023:

      This entirely depends on what career you would like to do. If you want to work in academia for example, having a PhD is beneficial if you want the opportunity to progress beyond working in the lab. It is also sometimes beneficial having a PhD to get certain jobs in industry too. The set back that comes with this, is sometimes it is difficult to get a PhD straight away because it can be quite competitive, or relies on you having your own funding if you don’t get onto a funded project. This may mean that you have to complete other jobs before you start doing a PhD, and PhDs take 3/4 years. This wasn’t my personal experience, I was quite lucky that I got a PhD where I completed my placement year during my undergraduate degree. However, this isn’t the experience of all my colleagues, some worked before starting a PhD.
      Another additional set back of my current role (Postdoctoral Researcher) is that you often only get contracts for 2/3 years, and have to apply for grants to stay on or look for a new lab group! This can be quite stressful!

    • Photo: Zahra Rattray

      Zahra Rattray answered on 22 Jun 2023:

      For me working in science has been a windy path- I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do, but knew that I was really interested in how medicines work and also how cancer spreads in the body. So, I picked pharmacy as a degree to learn about how medicines work. From there, I experimented with different areas of research until I found what I am working on now. I agree with everything Kamilla said about setbacks. Also, I would say, when you have a lot of setbacks and challenges it only makes success sweeter.

    • Photo: Kehinde Ross

      Kehinde Ross answered on 23 Jun 2023:

      After my PhD I never wanted to see a lab again, so I worked in retail for a while. I had regained my interest in science after a year or so and needed to develop a proper career. I was fortunate to get a postdoctoral job that I actually enjoyed, with a supportive boss in a nice lab. And I have not looked back since. The important thing is to remember that “working in science” is very broad, so you need to find the science and work combination that suits you – industry, academia, hospital, contract research organisations, big pharmaceutical companies, science communication…

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