Profile
Emma Agnew
-
About Me:
I’m from the Highlands of Scotland, but now live with my husband and dog (Finn the fox terrier) in East Lothian. I love all being outdoors so as soon as I’m clocked off from work you’ll find me in the sea doing some wild swimming or surfing. At the weekends, I’ll either be up the hills in bonnie Scotland or exploring new places to eat in the local area.
-
Read more
I love all things science and always have. I find the human body incredible and I’m always questioning why things happen to satisfy my inquisitive brain. I’m love to find new spots to explore, whether that’s half an hour away or thousands of miles away too. You won’t find me sitting down doing nothing for very long, I always like to be out and about and active.
-
My pronouns are:
She/her
-
My Work:
I work as a Government Scientist, giving scientific advice on keeping the Scottish population safe and healthy from the food we eat. This means that I have to understanding and be able to communicate the science of food poisoning to many different people.
-
Read more
As a Senior Scientific Adviser with Food Standards Scotland, a normal day in my role right now involves my logging in on my laptop and meeting with the science team virtually. We have a daily catch up to chat science or discuss what was on TV the night before. I might have a day filled with meeting others across the organisation to discuss projects I’m involved in on food poisoning. This might be speaking to people in our marketing team, our crime team or our nutrition team. We work collaboratively to ensure as an organisation we’re giving the right advice to the general public about what food is safe to eat and why.
I might also be working on my own reading and reviewing documents that are to be sent to Ministers in the Scottish Government. This is to make sure they understand the science of important issues, COVID-19 has been a good example of this.
I also get to be out and about in the community talking to everybody from children to the elderly about food safety and what to do to avoid food poisoning.
No day is the same, and that’s what I love about my job.
-
My Typical Day:
I mainly work from home, which is great as I can start work as soon as the dog wakes me up. I check my emails first and look at my calendar for the day to see who I’m meeting virtually and what topics we are to discuss. I work on lot of different projects all about food poisoning and I make sure the science of why we get sick is communicated clearly for everyone to understand. My days is always very busy with meetings, speaking to lots of different people, so before I know it it’s time to clock off around 3pm and enjoy the rest of my day.
-
What I'd do with the prize money:
As a STEM ambassador, I’d love to have my own kit of activities related to food poisoning, so I could go out and about to schools myself to deliver hands on activities to engage school pupils in STEM.
-
Education:
Invergordon Academy in the Highlands of Scotland.
The University of Edinburgh for all 3 of my degrees.
-
Qualifications:
7 standard grades (English, Maths, Biology, Chemistry, Art, Spanish, Graphic Communication), 5 Highers (English, Maths, Biology, Chemistry, Art), 2 Advanced Highers (Biology and Art).
University- Undergraduate degree in Medical Sciences, then a Postgraduate Masters and PhD in Cardiovascular Biology (so I technically am a Doctor now, but a Doctor of Science) all at The University of Edinburgh.
-
Work History:
Lifeguard – First job during my final years at school in the local leisure centre. This was one of my favourite jobs, as I love sports and worked with a great group of people who always had a laugh.
Waitress for Weddings- Summer job while at University to serve food/drinks to wedding guests at a lovely grand venue near Edinburgh. It was hard work and a lot of pressure not to drop tomato soup down people’s outfits.
Barmaid- Summer and term time job while at University in a small Edinburgh pub. Excellent job, pulling pints and making burgers, while speaking with all the local customers. This was a really fun job where I heard lots of different and interesting stories.
PhD- not technically a job but I did get paid to study for my PhD in cardiovascular biology. Worked in the laboratory and wrote research papers for 4 years.
Demonstrator at University- assisted in helping deliver practical University classes in the biology laboratories, as an extra job alongside studying for my PhD.
Postdoctoral Researcher- after my PhD I moved to Cincinnati in the USA to further my laboratory research career in the Children’s Hospital, working on how the heart develops.
Scientific Adviser- moved back to Scotland and took on a science role within Government to be able to see the impact of my work my closely with the general public.
Senior Scientific Adviser- current role at Food Standards Scotland.
-
Employer:
Food Standards Scotland- employed through the Scottish Government.
-
My Interview
-
What did you want to be after you left school?
Artist or a Scientist.
Were you ever in trouble at school?
I tried to make a motorcycle noise once with my tongue in art class and got in trouble for that, but that was the only time!
If you weren't doing this job, what would you choose instead?
I would have liked to have gone to art school to see where that career path would have taken me. Based on my drawing skills when playing Pictionary, this probably wouldn't have been very successful.
Who is your favourite singer or band?
It changes regularly but George Ezra right now. Queen are also a stand out.
What's your favourite food?
Roast chicken dinner.
If you had 3 wishes for yourself what would they be? - be honest!
To be happy for the rest of my life. To explore more of the world with the ones I love. For the sun to shine everyday.
Tell us a joke.
Why is it bad to trust atoms? They make up everything!
-