aspiringprofessionalshub

#MyPhDStory – Attending my first conference

April 30, 2015February 7, 2017by aspiringprofessionalshub2 Comments

Conferences provide a good opportunity for academics –early career researchers in particular – to present their work and develop valuable contacts in their field. Preparing for your first conference can seem daunting as you do not know what to expect, especially if you will be presenting! In today’s Reflections post, Nina, a research assistant at the University of the West of England, shares her experience of attending an international scientific conference for the first time.

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to present my first poster at the Koninklijke Nederlands Vereniging voor Microbiologie (KNVM) Microbiology Spring Meeting held in Arnhem, Netherlands. I had never been to a conference before so I hope sharing my experience will help other conference newbies.

Day 1

Monday (AM)

So…I’m not a great sleeper but I woke up quite tired, probably because I was so excited about the trip. It was a short journey from Bristol to Amsterdam – only an hour on plane. When I got to Amsterdam, it took a little while to figure out how the public transport system worked to get to Arnhem. I managed to get on the right train, the right bus and even get off at the right stops. In the end, travelling was easy as everyone spoke English and I arrived in one piece although knowing basic Dutch may have been of some benefit but hindsight is a great thing. The double decker trains blew my mind!

Monday (PM)

The hotel was lovely and I caught up with my industry sponsors and had dinner. This provided a good opportunity to settle in before being swept the official start of the conference. I would highly recommend getting in a day early if you can.

Day 2

Tuesday (PM)

I didn’t sleep terribly well but I think I was just nervous. Breakfast was so good, I forgot about my nerves for a while. I arrived at the conference early to give me enough time to set up my poster. Seeing my poster amongst the others gave me an overwhelming sense of pride and achievement. All the time I spent working on it was so worth it. My sponsors introduced me to a few people after which I attended some plenary sessions. There were about 500 people in the audience and I felt honoured to be among them. I used lunch as an opportunity to mingle with the crowd which was a bit daunting at first as everyone around me was speaking Dutch! I overcame my nerves and introduced myself to people, thankfully, everyone spoke English.

Tuesday (PM) – Poster time

After a few breakout sessions, it was time for the official conference dinner. I was sitting alone at a table and just kept hoping someone would sit with me. Luckily, three lovely Dutch professors sat at my table and we have a very good conversation about our respective countries, academia and loads more. It was so good, I almost forgot that it was time for me to present my poster! In case you were wondering, yes, the poster was presented at night time – after drinks!

I went to stand by my poster and made eye contact with a gentleman whose poster was next to mine. He explained that he was also presenting for the first time and was nervous. It was nice to talk to someone on the same level as I was and this helped me relax. Most attendees just walked by, having had a quick scan, moving on before I could say anything to them. Eventually, one by one, a few people came to ask questions. The questions were not as difficult as I expected e.g. ‘What is your poster about?’, ‘Why is this relevant to us?’ etc. I felt I answered confidently and accurately, overall, it went very well.

Day 3 – Homeward bound

I slept much better as the nerves had finally gone. I attended the morning meetings in the most relaxed state I had been since Monday. Unfortunately, I had to miss the second part of the day’s programme to enable me catch my flight. Overall, it was a great experience and I wondered why I was so nervous in the first place!

I would not call myself an expert on attending conferences but these are a few things I learnt from my experience –

Just be brave and talk to people…it was hard for me at first but I found everyone I spoke to really friendly and engaging.

If presenting a poster, wear something smart but comfortable because you want to be as relaxed as you can be.

Take some work with you, you’ll be amazed how much work you can get done during the commute and with less distractions to boot!

Bring business cards. I didn’t have any but everyone else seemed to. A business card enables people remember you and projects professionalism. If you are going to spend all that time networking, it is important your new contacts can remember your name!

Pace yourself. It can be a long day, especially if you have late night presentations. Try to get settled in a day early to adjust to your new surroundings.

If abroad where English is not the first language, learn basic terminology (Hello, Please, Thank you); it just seems more polite.

Keep your poster, it’s a nice memento of the good work you have done. You can also find somewhere to put it up in your University.

A practical one for the ladies – do not pack new shoes or heels! You’ll be surprised how long you will be on your feet!

As a final thought, just remember that everyone was once in the same boat as you. There is nothing to be afraid of, if anything, this conference proved to me just how fun and relaxed it can be.

Thanks Nina. Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section. If you would like to share your experience(s) with us, contact us on aspiringprofessionalshub@gmail.com.

#CareerChat – What does it mean to be globally relevant?

April 27, 2015January 16, 2017by aspiringprofessionalshub2 Comments

A few weeks ago, I (Emmanuel) was called upon at the 11^th hour by the organisers of an international student conference to replace one of their scheduled speakers. I only had a few hours to prepare to give a talk around their theme of ‘Personal and professional development for global relevance’ (Thanks Amara!) I couldn’t help but ask myself this question “What exactly does it mean to be globally relevant on a personal level?”

As a lecturer and researcher, I was forced to ask myself some questions. Are today’s courses and degrees designed with a “global eye”? Are students being prepared for a global world? How do I know if I am globally relevant? What does it take to be globally relevant? With all these questions in my mind, I chose a title (same as above), which was just as much self-reflection as it was my seminar talk. I will share a few points from my ⁿth hour prepared slides but I am also really curious for your opinion on this topic.

I was surprised at how difficult it was to find a definition for global relevance. I stumbled on a definition of Global Relevance by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) as “the required characteristic of an International Standard that can be used or implemented as broadly as possible by affected industries and other stakeholders around the world.” I have made some modifications to this definition to “The required characteristic of an individual that can be applied as broadly as possible by affected (knowing, rational, studied, responsible…) individuals, groups and other stakeholders around the world.”

Now armed this this definition, I pose a question to you as I did at the talk – Would you consider yourself to be globally relevant? Global relevance is as much an end point as it is a journey. Without knowledge of where you are journeying to, you can go on a long, unending drive until you run out of fuel. For those seeking global relevance in an area of specialism or interest e.g. sports, academic, technology, writing etc. without knowing what the end goal is might lead you into that long winding path of confusion. Perhaps it is time to look at your personal GPS and reassess your journey (hopefully your GPS is not like my old one which kept telling me GO LEFT at every turn…binned.com)

So how can we find that relevance globally?

Begin with the end in mind – This is our mantra on the Aspiring Professional’s hub. In your field of study, area of business interest or chosen career, is there anyone, business or role model in that position you aspire to be in worldwide? Knowing something about the journey to their attainment or achievement could be a starting guide for you to start a plan for your own global attainment. These days it is not so hard to learn about global figures when you have Google and in most cases these global stars are on social media sites such as LinkedIn, Twitter or have personal websites.

Have a plan – of your own for that career, design, business or idea BUT with a global audience in mind. For example, if you are choosing a course at University, think broadly about how relevant that course is another country or even worldwide before deciding. If creating a business plan, can that business service a need in another town, state, country, continent beyond your current location? So we suggest in whatever your goals or targets, THINK GLOBALLY.

With every good plan and desire come challenges, so Research, Research, Research. This is usually where most plans fail as the LACK OF KNOWLEDGE leads to death of the idea or what was once a great plan.

Understand your USP or Brand – in the business and marketing worlds, the terms USP (unique selling point) and brands come to mind. Understanding what your skills, attributes or ability (USP) or what your brand is in the context of your audience or the people who might need, understand or want those skills are is very important. As Paul Stafford, Co-founder of DesignStudio says “a brand will always be able to transcend barriers if audiences believe and connect with the message.”

Furthermore, whilst understanding personal attributes remains important, sharing and having a community to help you contextualise and develop your ideas is just as important if not more so it is important to Network. Remember, you are not the only one in the world with the ground-breaking or crazy idea so having a platform to harness that attribute or idea with a receptive or critical audience would do you no harm.

Finally, self-evaluation is important. With constant evaluation, you can assess whether you, your ideas or plans are progressing or whether it is stale and needs change or a revamp. Whilst preparing this talk, I came across The Success Indicator Poster by Mary Ellen Tribby, which differentiates, successful from unsuccessful people. This can be your motivational tool to start that global journey.

We would like to say thank you to all our readers. We are humbled at how far reaching our articles have ‘travelled’ and we think it is fair to say we are indeed finding our feet within those murky waters of global relevance. Please share your thoughts on this article by leaving a comment, we learn so much from them! If you have an article to share, please email us @ info@aspiringprofessionalshub.com.

#CareerChat – Dealing with Rejection

April 23, 2015January 16, 2017by aspiringprofessionalshub9 Comments

Dear Dr A

Thank you for attending the interview for the above position. Regretfully I am now writing to inform you that, on this occasion, you have been unsuccessful. I would like to take the opportunity to thank you for your interest in working for our organisation. We appreciate the time and care that you have given in submitting your application and attending the interview, and would be happy to receive a further application from you for any future suitable vacancy. I wish you every success in the future.

Yours sincerely,

HR

It could come by letter, email or face to face but the emotions you experience are the same. It feels like some of the air has been let out of your lungs leaving you feeling like a deflated balloon. If you live long enough, work hard enough and take enough risks, at some point(s) in your career journey, you will experience rejection. In the last few years, especially since the recession, the employment market has been particularly difficult with new graduates bearing the brunt of it. We cannot count the number of times we have read in the newspapers or watched on television where new graduates discuss their inability to get a job despite incredible effort. I (Amara) heard about a lady who applied for over a hundred jobs and was not called to a single interview! Technology has made applying for jobs so much easier, however, this comes with the increased chance of being rejected.

Rejection does not just apply to employment – it could be a manuscript you submitted to a journal or editor, an application you made to your first choice University or a grant application to fund your great big idea. Regardless of where it comes from, rejection can severely dent confidence as we often tend to equate it with failing and being a failure. However, rejection does not have to be such a negative thing. It can actually become a useful learning tool in our personal and professional development journey. So, when you face rejection, what can you do differently?

Keep things in perspective – You may have failed at something but that does not make you a ‘failure’. An interview result is not an indication of your personal worth. No one likes to experience rejection. The rejection letter you see above was one I (Amara) received and remember how bad I felt when I read it. I had been excited to make it to the last 4 out of about 100 applicants to be interviewed. The interview had gone really well (in my opinion) but a few days later, I found out I didn’t get the job. After a few days of reflecting, I chose to see the whole process as a positive not negative experience. No, I did not get the job but I had made it to the last 4 out of 100. The top 5%. This meant that there was something about my CV, covering letter, personal statement and application form that had appealed to the employer. Maybe I just wasn’t a right fit for them. Maybe they made a mistake! Interviewers are human after all. Choose to see being invited to an interview as a plus, regardless of whether you get a job or not, at least, they like you on paper! When you experience rejection, try and think objectively. Choose to see failure as an event and not an identity.

To thyself be true – This calls for some ‘reflection-on-action.’ Think over your application process again? If you have applied for 100 jobs without a single response, then in our opinion there is a problem somewhere. Are you using the ‘scatter-gun’ approach to your job search? Is there a mismatch between your skills profile and the jobs you are applying for? Do both your CV and personal statement match the person-specification in the advertisement or are you just sending the same documents to everyone? Are there any technical or subject specific skills you lack that could improve your chances at success? Did you follow the journal submission instructions to the letter? Does your manuscript fit the scope of the journal where you submitted it? Do you meet the entry requirements to get on the course you have applied for?

Deal with the issues – When it is difficult to know where things are going wrong, seek expert help. A careers adviser can look at your CV and provide information that can be the difference between getting a job or not. A mentor who is knowledgeable of a field that you are trying to get into can provide invaluable advice or know someone who knows someone who needs someone? Do you find yourself really nervous at interviews? So do most people! Just try to avoid letting your nerves get the upper hand. This might sound like cliché but Practice does make perfect. If your CV has looked the same for the last 2 years, is there a course that can help you update your skills profile?

Embrace feedback – When you do receive feedback, please remember it is not personal (at least most of the time!). If someone, has in good faith, taken their time to provide that information, see it as them investing in you. They most likely would not do it, if they did not see something positive in you or your work that needs improvement to make it better. Feedback can be difficult to take but if you can be dispassionate about it, you will find it is essential for your personal development. When you find yourself in a situation where you have not done as well as you hoped, seek feedback. Send a follow up email after an interview when you did not get the job. You will learn and grow from it.

Never give up – You never know how close you are to that Yes! Read the biography of any successful person you admire and you will undoubtedly find a rejection story among its pages. A colleague who evaluates grant applications for the EU shared that sometimes the difference between ‘accept’ and ‘reject’ can be 1 or 2 marks out of 100. She has had to reject a grant application that scored 95 out of 100, simply because another one scored 97! Another colleague had a manuscript rejected four times but finally got her work published in an international journal. The biggest surprise was that it got published in the journal she had sent it to in the first place! Each time she got a rejection letter, she improved her manuscript based on the feedback and submitted it again. She had enough self-belief in her research not to be put off by a few stumbling blocks. Be that way about yourself too. Have enough self-belief in what your skills can bring to an organisation or what your big idea can bring to the world. Be persistent and tenacious. You just never know.

About our writer – After completing a PhD in Microbiology, Amara is building her career in academia. She is grateful for every opportunity to teach and mentor a new generation of scientists, undertake research and develop international partnerships. She believes in the combined power of education and productive relationships in building successful careers. Stay connected on Twitter – @amaratweets

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#PhDAdvice – So you want to do a PhD? Busting the Myths!

April 20, 2015January 7, 2017by aspiringprofessionalshub14 Comments

Our latest addition to the Hub is ‘For PhDs’ – here we will discuss a range of issues regarding the doctoral process. We will be sharing from our personal experiences as well as reflective pieces from current PhD students and graduates. The aim is to provide a realistic picture of the process for prospective students and also to equip current students with tools to enhance their academic experience. In this article, we will be discussing some common misconceptions about the PhD process.

What is a PhD?

Before dealing with the myths about PhDs, we would like to briefly discuss what a PhD actually is. PhD is an abbreviation for Doctor of Philosophy (also shortened to DPhil at some institutions) and is the highest level degree that can be achieved by a student. It is a postgraduate research degree and is awarded for an original and significant contribution to knowledge in a chosen field after an extensive research study. Majority of PhD entrants (UK) possess a postgraduate degree (MA, MSc, MRes) but it is possible to register for a PhD after completing an undergraduate degree with a first class or second class upper. Typically (In the UK), the PhD lasts for three or four years full time and between four to six years part time.

In recent years in our roles as academic advisors and lecturers, we have come across many students who have enquired about applying for PhD opportunities for a variety of reasons. Some people view the PhD as an opportunity to stay back at University and continue studying until they decide what or where they would like to be in their future careers. Others seem to be fulfilling other people’s (e.g. family) ambitions, others see it a required step to get to the next level in their careers. Whatever your reasons are, it is important that you are aware of what you are getting yourself into when you decide to do a PhD.

Let’s discuss some common misconceptions about studying for a PhD…

You should be very knowledgeable about everything – The whole point of a PhD is to discover or learn something new. You will become an expert in your research area but definitely not at everything! It is actually more likely that the more you know about your topic, the less you know about other things, so do not count on us during a pub quiz! If you do not know everything about your topic when you start, welcome to the club! One thing we found humbling was the realisation of how much we did not know at the beginning of our PhDs compared to having spent three years investigating our respective topics. We sincerely believe that successfully completing a PhD is not as much about intelligence as it is tenacity and perseverance.

It is just another course – To answer this we’ll say NO it is not! During your undergrad and master’s degrees you would have experienced a range of teaching and learning activities including lectures, tutorials, seminars, independent learning and group work. Some people are surprised and often unprepared for the structure of a PhD. Your PhD should be seen as an independent project where you are the Project manager reporting to your superiors (supervisors) about how you manage resources (time, money) to achieve pre-defined objectives (research aims) to a given deadline (thesis submission). Regardless of discipline, studying for a PhD can often be a solitary process. To make an original contribution to your field, you will be carrying out research that has not been done before. While supervisors can support, the day to day management of your project is your responsibility. Approach your PhD like a job as well as studying for a degree.

It is like a 9 – 5 job – Having said to view your PhD like a job, it is much more than your regular 9-5. PhD students often joke about how much I (Emmanuel) call the PhD ‘a life choice’. At a certain point, your PhD will consume your life because not too long after you start your PhD you realise how little time you have for friends, family and personal enjoyment. I (Amara) remember conducting experiments overnight in the lab…asking myself over and over again why I ever thought a PhD was a good thing! Non-laboratory based PhDs are not left out, conducting research and writing it up takes time, especially when you do it well. To this end we say if you are looking for a PhD which is akin to a 9-5 job, whilst it is not impossible, it is very unlikely.

It will automatically lead to a job (or a better job) – Sometimes we have seen many PhDs surprised at what they consider the lack of jobs available to them after graduation. Getting a job after the PhD is not a given and is definitely not automatic. Becoming employed still requires you shine throughout the whole application process – including a strong CV and personal statement etc. Depending on what you want to do next, having a PhD may even be viewed as at best having no benefit and at worst a hindrance! If you are looking at staying in academia, more often than not, everyone else will have a PhD too. If you would like to go into industry or another discipline, it may be even more challenging. Please look out for future articles on this theme of PhD employment as we discuss these issues in more detail.

PhDs are for nerds and loners – The renowned Liverpool football club theme “You’ll never walk alone” comes to mind at this point. Several PhD candidates have either failed to complete their PhD because they assume doing a PhD does not require other interpersonal skills such as the ability to communicate and interact with others, be it supervisors or other researchers in their field of study. Yes, a PhD can have solitary moments but see yourself as an ‘independent, team player.’ Many UK institutions have structured processes which allow for regular interaction with supervisors and other academics and co researchers such as recorded supervisor meetings, researcher’s conferences and other graduate school events. You can have fun during your PhD, just probably in small doses. Ensure you network effectively, even if just within your research group, sometimes an encouraging word can go a long way when things are not going well.

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#UniAdvice – Three simple tips that improved my academic writing.

April 17, 2015January 7, 2017by aspiringprofessionalshub2 Comments

Do you approach writing assessments with fear or excitement? Do you procrastinate till the day before your paper, dissertation, essay, technical report is due because you just do not like writing. In this article, Emmanuel shares his journey to becoming a better writer. No one is born a great writer, we all have to work at it!

Speaking to my students in a revision class this afternoon about writing dissertations, I was reminded about some of the advice I received that changed my understanding of writing and actually made me appreciate academic writing and dare I say, start to enjoy it. The funny thing is that like many other students at university, I enjoyed creative writing. I could write for fun, tell stories and create tales etc. However, I found academic writing challenging. I will share three of the key bits of advice I received during my masters and doctorate.

The first major change in my writing came from my MSc project supervisor (and mentor) who told me that my writing was too modest. Initially, my thoughts were, of course it should be modest. Clearly I did not understand the logic behind the statement and as she occasionally reminds me, she read my work about ten times before giving the go ahead to submit (I despaired at that point). Looking back over the years, my writing was modest for many reasons – one in particular which resonates with many students which is cultural background. Coming from a cultural background where you are not meant to criticise or question ‘authority’ creates a writing mindset where you write like you are walking on coals of fire “softly softly” just to get through the writing rather than express your ability, knowledge and critical awareness. She said, “Your writing is a reflection of your personality” so project yourself well through your writing.

The second bit of advice that got me through my academic writing was the importance of planning your write up before you put pen to paper or better still, fingers to keyboard. With the experience of marking dissertations you get to see different levels of engagement and ability to write but it is all so easy to see the unplanned dissertation or thesis write up. An unplanned dissertation or thesis is usually more difficult to write and for the marker hard to read or follow. Without planning, written work can lack coherence and structure. So what to do? There is no generic first step but before you start writing it would be helpful to seek advice from your tutor, adviser or supervisor (who obviously understands your topic or project) about how to plan your writing and what would be important to communicate in your work; review past successful dissertations in similar subject areas and have the key materials you need to begin your writing. For example, if writing a science focused dissertation or thesis, without a well written ‘Methods’ and ‘Results’ section, you are unable to articulate your findings and tell a good story. Many Universities provide writing support through their learning development units so take advantage of them!

The third key I received from my doctoral supervisor was simple but effective. Writing a thesis is like telling a story. Considering these great bits of advice came from women, does it mean women are better writers???? Food for thought. Back to reality now, if you cannot tell a critically appraised, logical and well written coherent story then your write up would not be received as well as you might think or believe. From personal experience and talking to several examiners, it is common that at the end of a viva (Oral examination) examiners tend to comment on the quality of the writing and in some cases how easy or nice or pleasant a thesis or dissertation was to read. Think about this, if your work is easy and pleasant to read, perhaps it would be easy and pleasant to assess??? So remember, tell a good story (not a narrative) of your academic work or project and ensure it reads well and makes sense before you press the submit button.

Many thanks to my supervisors for the key tips that ensured I developed a liking and value for my voice on written academic work. Please share your own tips in the comments sections. For any suggestions or tips about getting through the academic writing process, please feel free to email us at info@aspiringprofessionalshub.com. Connect with us on Twitter @emmanueladukwu and @amaratweets.

If you enjoyed reading this article, please share and subscribe to our network! If you have an article you would like to share with our readers, please get in touch – info@aspiringprofessionalshub.com.