Reaching a point in your career where you have the option to make a change can be quite daunting, especially when you don’t know the full scope of opportunities available to you. The majority of early career researchers (PhD students and post-doctoral researchers) in academia, within Biological Sciences and Medicine and Health at The University of Leeds are unaware of the careers they could potentially delve into. The Early Career Science Day was organised to teach our researchers about the possible career options within academia and outside of academia, as well as the importance of networking to achieve the best possible career for each individual.
Our invited speakers of the day discussed career options outside academia. Del Trezise, (Senior Director at Sartorius and Board Member of ELRIG) discussed the large range of careers you could diverge into within industry, as well as the critical skills required to transition into industry. He highlighted the importance of networking and the opportunities provided by ELRIG to interact with industry experts.
Our next speaker Supa Begum-Coles (Technical Sales Consultant at Miltenyi Biotec), along with Del, touched on the difference in working culture between small and larger established companies from experience. Supa encouraged us as academic researchers to broaden our career searches and approach any career changes with courage and confidence. Strongly endorsing Langton Howarth who helped her obtain her current position, Supa also recommended the use of the right scientific recruitment company.
Finally Emma Howarth (Managing Director at Langton Howarth) finished the session by discussing the support Langton Howarth can provide to help us sell ourselves in the correct way and successfully seek the right position outside academia.
“I found it very useful to listen to their stories and feel reassured that if we don’t get our next round of funding, there will always be a job out there.” This feedback highlights the success of this event and the message delivered by these amazing speakers.
