• Question: How many hours a day do you work?

    Asked by jarrad stoddart to Theo, Philip, Kerry, Alex on 13 Nov 2014.
    • Photo: Alex Pool

      Alex Pool answered on 13 Nov 2014:

      I normally get into work about 8.30am and leave about 6pm. So longer than a normal working day, and some experiments will finish later than that. A lot of our work has to be done at set times for the experiment to work properly so that can occasionally mean late days. We also (although as little as possible) have to work on weekends. That’s because the cells we grow don’t stop growing at weekends so we have to take care of them.

    • Photo: Theo Laftsoglou

      Theo Laftsoglou answered on 13 Nov 2014:

      Hey, it really depends on many things, which is also what I like about this job that you have control of your time. So, to give you some numbers, the low end is about 6 to 8 hours. My usual days are around 10 to 12 hours a day. It may sound like a lot, but I enjoy my work, so it doesn’t feel like it.

    • Photo: Kerry O'Shea

      Kerry O'Shea answered on 13 Nov 2014:

      I try to get my work done within a 9-10 hour day. There are times when I’m busier and need to work evenings/weekends but mostly I work no more than 10 hours a day.

    • Photo: Philip Ratcliffe

      Philip Ratcliffe answered on 13 Nov 2014:

      Some days no many and some days lots – that’s one of the good things about my job: when I’ve got and idea to work on that really interests me then I can work all day and when I haven’t got anything particularly I can relax. I suppose that on average I work about 50 hours a week, which is rather more than most people. Also remember that true scientists work even when they’re not officially working: when I’m doing the shopping, catching a train or driving the car I’m often thinking of problems that I’m trying to solve.

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