Education – Page 6 – The Aspiring Professionals Hub

#CareerAdvice – Developing your resilience gap!

June 1, 2016July 2, 2017by aspiringprofessionalshub4 Comments

In our journey as aspiring professionals, we will face a lot of challenging situations. How do you deal with the pressure that comes with achieving your personal as well as professional goals? Do you react impulsively or respond resiliently. We stumbled across this article by Uche Ezichi and he has graciously given us permission to share it here. I believe this is an important lesson to us all.

When I left my investment banking career, I was thrilled to join the Goldman Sachs (GS) HR team. Considering their performance, what better place to start my new career of developing leaders. So what went wrong? Nothing really changed with GS. My team remained the same, 100% dedicated to their job and willing to give 120%. The issue was with me.

Isn’t it funny how when we are not happy about our situation, we sometimes complain and expect our organisation or team we joined to change for us?

Continue reading “#CareerAdvice – Developing your resilience gap!”

#CareerFocus – Production Scientist

May 11, 2016December 29, 2016by aspiringprofessionalshubLeave a comment

In May, we are sharing career stories from within our network of aspiring professionals! Our goal is to celebrate the variety of careers within our network as well as educate recent (and not so recent) graduates on keeping an open mind when it comes to career options! In this article, Emmanuel interviewed Eleanor Williams, a Production Scientist (Scientist II) on her career journey as a scientist in the Biotechnology sector.

Can you tell us about your educational background and career journey to date?

I did my degree in Forensic Biology then I continued further into a master’s degree in Molecular Biotechnology then stayed on and worked as a research assistant at the University of the West of England, before moving into a role in industry. I now work as a production scientist, in the manufacturing side of things making reference standards for cancer research.

How did you get into this field?

I never really loved science that much even though I did well at it throughout school, and it wasn’t until I did my A level biology that I developed more of an interest in the sciences.

You are currently a Scientist II. What does this mean?

When I applied to join my current company, I started out as a Scientist I and was promoted to Scientist II. What this entails is that I do some similar work to what I did as Scientist I but with more responsibilities; delegating work to junior members of the team and liaising with external organisations more. Hopefully after this, I will be able to progress further as a Senior Scientist.

Continue reading “#CareerFocus – Production Scientist”

#CareerFocus – Clinical Trials Administration

May 2, 2016December 29, 2016by aspiringprofessionalshubLeave a comment

As another cohort of final year undergraduates prepare for their last exams, the next question usually is ‘What next?’ Postgraduate degree? Job? The transition from student to employee can be something of a mystery therefore our focus during #MyCareerStory is to shed some light on different career paths – paths well trodden as well as the road less travelled. We will be inviting professionals from a variety of disciplines to share their stories. In today’s article we discuss with Abiola Owolabi about developing her career in Clinical Research.

APH: Can you tell us about your educational background and career progression to date?

AO: Following my GCSE and A levels in the sciences, I chose a Biological Sciences degree, because of the wide spectrum of subjects it offered – biotechnology, biochemistry, genetics, molecular biology and statistics.

I have worked in clinical research for over fifteen years. Initially starting out in a forensic laboratory, I soon moved into the clinical research laboratories rising to managerial level before I discovered my main gifting was in clinical trial administration.

I am a highly motivated and disciplined individual, who loves to be organised and solve problems.

I have worked for clinical research organisations, such as Chiltern, Quintiles, inVentiv Health Clinical, Richmond Pharmacology, Retroscreen Pharmacology as well as pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies such as Bristol Myers Squibb, Glenmark, Allergan and currently Biogen.

How did a graduate in Biological Sciences get into the world of clinical research?

Continue reading “#CareerFocus – Clinical Trials Administration”

#PhDChat – My Transition from Industry to PhD

April 18, 2016December 29, 2016by aspiringprofessionalshub2 Comments

Thinking about what next for your career or you are in the “i’m not sure” what or where to go to next in your career? Well our transition reflections are back again! Our previous article showing a successful transition from a PhD to a role in industry spurred many of our readers on towards their search for their dream careers. In today’s article, new PhD candidate in biomedical science, Ellena Elcocks shares her experience of transitioning from her degree to industry and back to the PhD.

As a failed medical school applicant out of college, I looked to the next necessary steps to get me into medical school via the graduate route. I chose biomedical science and it’s probably the most successful last minute decision I’ve made to date. In 2014 my first round of university ended and I proudly graduated with a 1st Class in Biomedical Science.

I spent the first 2 years of my BSc degree still on track to apply for graduate entry into medicine, and then my final year project began. I was smitten. Research was my jam.

Without meaning to be over zealous, I felt like what I was doing had meaning. My research project was focused at how bacteria in probiotics survive and how it applies in the real world. I was hooked! I started applying for PhDs and before graduating I had secured 3 interviews. Lacking the experience needed, I was unsuccessful with them all and I felt deflated. I went back to the drawing board and started applying to any and all jobs that would keep me connected to research.

Continue reading “#PhDChat – My Transition from Industry to PhD”

#CareerChat – How to perform well at your next academic interview

April 11, 2016December 29, 2016by aspiringprofessionalshub3 Comments

Previously we shared an article aimed at helping graduates prepare and perform at interviews. In today’s post, Emmanuel reflects on his experiences at academic interviews and offers advice for aspiring academics about to embark on this journey.

Before my first academic interview, my experiences of interviews were straightforward (industry and other sectors) – myself, a round table or similar and my interviewers. At those interviews, the questions centered around how much I knew about the company, a bit about me and my experience, why they should hire me etc. My experience of academic interviews was quite different.

My first academic interview was for a research fellowship in Northern Ireland to carry out a project on the molecular detection and distribution of bacteria in the gut from clinical samples. As you would expect, this was a specialised area and the interview format was no different from my previous experiences. It was about the specifics of the research area, my experience and what my technical skills were in relation to what experimentation was required for the position. No doubt, I had done my due diligence; researched my interviewers, the project, the institution, shortlisting plan and salary scales…having worked in industry previously, I went in prepared and the format was as I expected.

Continue reading “#CareerChat – How to perform well at your next academic interview”