27 Apr 2012
The Day of Science and Careers, organised by the College of Scholars, took place at SCI HQ, Belgrave Square, London on 16 April 2012. It was originally envisaged as an opportunity for scholars to meet and discuss science following presentations on their research projects by some current scholars. Liam Ball, Philip Craven and Erika Davies (pictured) duly gave excellent and stimulating talks, generating considerable discussion.
The meeting was expanded to include all Early Career People and includes talks and advice on careers, as requested by the Board of Trustees. A range of speakers described their education, careers and experiences and offered valuable inside advice. Careers in academia and science-based industries were covered, with the latter ranging from SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises) to multinational agrochemical and pharma companies.
The last two talks gave advice on applying for jobs, outlining the skills required plus some useful tips. While they both stressed the importance of SMEs to the UK economy, the advantages and disadvantages of working in them were also covered.
Building on the very successful annual Kickstart Your Career meetings run by the Liverpool and North West group, an important feature of the meeting was an informal session at the end where participants were able to talk to speakers and others individually over wine and nibbles. In his summing up, Sir Geoffrey Allen's comment that, 'this has been a most useful and very successful meeting and I very much look forward to the next CoS meeting,' described the feelings of all who attended.
I wish to thank everyone who contributed and, particularly, Sir Geoffrey for paying for the lunch and Charne Green and Monica Ugalde for their hard work and support.
The next CoS event will be a Regional Presentations Event at Cambridge University in the autumn – details will appear on the CoS web pages.
Professor Alan Heaton
Principal, College of Scholars
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