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Name - Haniah Sindhoo Current job title - Marketing Lead A levels/ equivalent - I went to High school in Scotland. Highers - Maths, English, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, History. Advanced Highers - Chemistry and Biology Graduate degrees Bsc:Pharmacology Msc:Biomedical and Molecular Sciences with Business Favourite science fact - Mitochondria aren't actually the small bean shapes we have seen in textbooks. They often fuse together forming large networks and contain their own circular DNA! Journey in 3 Words - challenging, rewarding, exciting Briefly describe your role - I currently work as marketing lead for UK based biotechnology company Nuchido. As a highly scientific company focused on anti-ageing research I bridge the gap between the scientific context of the company and the commercial requirements. My main roles include writing scientific content, creating and managing social media channels and helping with PR. Nuchido is still in the growth stages only being a couple of years old, the beauty of this is that I can get involved in so many different aspects of the company. I get given plenty of responsibility and support from my colleagues and the opportunity to really establish myself which I love. I have learned so many things from digital marketing and analytics, to social media strategy, intellectual property, e-commerce and supplement regulations. Work- Life Balance- this is something I have really struggled with in the past. The final year of my undergraduate degree I was so stressed out, unable to relax, constantly feeling guilty if I wasn't studying. I was really burnt out and almost quit university. Since then I have made it a priority to take care of myself and give myself boundaries. When I changed my mindset and had more work life balance my work improved and my grades got better. I focused more on being productive during the hours I set myself so that I can enjoy my free time and relax in the evening. Seperating my work space from my relaxing space really helped with this. What motivated you to pursue a career in science - I have always been fascinated by science. It was my favourite subject in school, I wanted to understand how things worked and why they functioned that way. In high school I loved biology, to me it just made sense and continuously made me gasp in amazement. For me it wasn't really an active decision. I just followed the subjects I enjoyed and applied that same thinking to choosing my degree. What do/ did you enjoy the most about your degree - what i enjoyed most was the variety. I got a taste of lots of different fields, physiology, pharmacology, neuroscience. With my masters degree everything we were taught had so many practical applications and was related to some of the most exciting areas of research. What is most important when choosing a masters and what motivated you to pursue one? When I finished my undergraduate degree I was absolutely terrified and lacking in self confidence. I had no clue what I wanted to do but knew that my future wasn't in research. When I found a taught masters that combined my love of science with commercial subjects such as business, corporate finance, marketing I knew I wanted to study that. I am grateful that the University I did my undergrad at was running the course so it meant I didn't have to move and already knew the staff and area. What transferable skills did you get from your degree and how do you use them in your current role. The main thing I developed during my masters was confidence. I threw myself into networking events, extracurricular activities such as enterprise challenge, and becoming a member of the students representative council. I also developed my public speaking skills via journal clubs and presentations. Another really helpful skill was developing my communication skills. I did a science communication honours project in which I had to explain complex cancer biology subjects to a variety of people of different ages and backgrounds. All of these really help me in my current job. You completed a degree in a pandemic… how did you cope? Honestly, not well and with the help of lots of wine! It was such an uncertain time and everything changed so quickly. One day we were in classes, the next everything was closed. It was terrifying especially as my mum was immunocompromised and we didn't know what was going to happen. I tried my best to maintain a routine and stay on top of my university work but it wasn't easy. Some days I didn't get out of bed, I didn't do any work and I felt super overwhelmed. I tried to be kind to myself and not put enormous pressure on myself to be productive 24/7. I'm sending lots of support to all students who are still going through this because it's tough! But you can do this! What advice would you give anyone wanting to follow your career path - Just put yourself out there. I attended lots of careers and networking events to learn about the different career options I had. Speak to people (I know it can be terrifying) and share your career goals, ask questions and ask for advice, you never know who you may connect with! When considering your career path, how much has your potential salary affected your decision? For me the salary wasn't the most important factor. Obviously, we all have bills to pay but being a broke student for 5 years meant any salary seemed like a lot of money to me. I have to say it is nice having some disposable income for the first time. My main concern was finding a career path which would be a good fit for me. I wanted to work in an environment in which I could grow and develop with opportunities for progression. Outside science how would you describe yourself - outside of science I have so many different interests. I love watching football, playing sports, cooking and reading. I also love makeup and fashion as a way to express myself. To stay up to date with Haniah follow her on instagram : @believeinyourcell

Academia is the ghetto : A letter to my naive self Hi there, So you have decided academia is the path you want to follow.Motivated, passionate and ready to put in the work. What could go wrong?Your plan has a back up and even your backup has a backup. You've done your googles and now set to conquer and be the badass scientist that you are capable of being. Not to crush your dreams but here are a few things academia will throw at you. 1. You can have passion and no support: See that motivation and passion you go into something with. You are ready to put in the hours and hours of work. You are ready for the perceived challenges of academia. What you may not realise is that not every supervisor or institution will know how to nurture that fire in you. This isn’t your fault but just a fragmented piece of the broken system you happen to find yourself navigating through. Research projects aren’t always enjoyable so you’re going to have to dig real deep and remember the reasons you started this journey, put out your best work no matter what the situation is. After you’ve done good by you, you can then re-evaluate if this broken system is one worth fighting to stay in. 2. Your main research focus might not have funding Research is innovative, groundbreaking and life changing? Research follows funding. Without funding there is no research. The faster you familiarise yourself with funding areas and fixate less on a single idea the better. It's’ not to say you won't do what you want but you have to be real about where money is coming from . 3. It may not be all that you envisioned it You know that perfect picture. The bubble you have created in your head. It’s an amazing escape but honestly not reality. What I want to say about this, even though when you first realise this you will indeed be heartbroken and even feel quite stupid for not doing enough research. It isn’t your fault. There is no amount of preparation that compares to the real experience. You now know it for what it is and not what you perceive it to be. Accept it … this will take some time. But fully accept it and then re-evaluate if this broken system is one worth fighting to stay in . 4. You can spend a lot of time doing something to achieve nothing Research can get monotonous. How do you handle failure? Really set out your coping mechanisms and have checks in with yourself. This can be a person, a written reminder or journal entries. Never lose focus of your goal or else you’ll find yourself going in circles chasing nothing and having nothing tangible but disappointment. Set time limits and checkpoints to either hold yourself accountable or the system itself. You don’t want to spend years working on something and realising it no longer serves the same core purpose you started it for. 5. You may never be recognised widely for all your work Sorry to say it. That Nobel prize, 10 awards may never become a thing. Detach your worth away from these things so when they do come it is a lovely addition and bonus. Unfortunately you have entered a system that rewards things like this. I am still navigating things but maybe its easy for me to feel like im not worth much then getting excited than overestimating my importance and being disappointed. 6. The thing you may not want to do may end up being the thing that you do This ties into point 2 and 3 but with a slightly positive side. Yes the system is broken but there are bits that still work.Somethings may not fully align with what you had envisioned but that doesn’t mean you have failed. Go to where appreciates you. Good working environment and mental health beats ranking of institutions or validation from assholess ! 7. No one really knows what they are doing Most people are winging it. Okay maybe I am exaggerating. What I have found while a lot of my black counterparts have this master plan of how they landed in their Phd, I have interacted with quite a few white counterparts that more or less landed into some positions. Not to say they didnt work hard but cut yourself some slack ad allow yourself to enjoy things without stressing about all the fine details. 8. You don't know enough people yet This is most likely no fault of your own but to thrive in academia you need to be supported by people that understand this “broken” system. This is where I emphasise that reaching out and interacting with people will do you a whole world of good in securing your place in academia. 9. The money: Academic pay isn’t as bad in the UK as people make it out to be. There is although this weird place where a lot of jobs ask for a pHD and offer salaries only marginally higher than those without a pHD. So 3-6 years of your life for a wage that is not statistically significant ( see what I did there lol) . But seriously, go into academia very aware of what salary expectations are. Never feel ashamed for prioritising money, Bills don't pay themselves . If this means taking a break to gain funds, remember academia is a system that will remain. You can always come back 10. Do this shit for you ! As the famous saying goes. Don't take panadol for another man's headache. I am a firm believer in constantly evaluating why you are doing something. If it doesn’t SERVE YOU. Not a greater purpose, if it doesn’t make you happy for at least 50% of the time please leave. It is not worth it. When academia stops serving you, pack your bundle( bags) and go ! Life is short and shouldn’t be spent being miserable. Adama has decided to stay in academia...for now but will be using these points at every point in my journey. My Msc year taught me what to accept, back myself but also not to kill myself over an idea or dream, The only important thing is that I was/ am happy !

Should I do more or less? We live in “secure the bag” “Invest” “ side hustle” culture… so where do we draw the line and accept we are only one human ! It’s human nature or maybe capitalism's fault for ingraining the routine use of comparison. You can’t help but compare yourself to everyone ! We encourage networking and saying yes to as many opportunities without acknowledging that you are only one person. The truth is that you can say no and in fact should say no a lot more often. So while 2020 I took on probably a lot more than I should have, I accept I have a toxic working culture and the idea of rest is more or less a foreign concept to me. Let's look back at my” headless chicken year” I am the type of person that gets ideas, gets excited and can’t really stop until i’ve done at least 50% of it. In 2020 there was a point where I spread myself like the last bit of butter but had two slices of toast. There was just enough of me to cover everything going on. At this time I didn’t prioritise REST. I wanted to be everywhere and do anything because “ how could I miss out “? I saw a great idea and wanted to be part of it because I was genuinely excited. What I have learnt from this is to be honest with my time and realise REST in itself is a timeslot and should be there. While I can handle busy periods ( again my toxic work habits) I can't let it interfere with the moments I have for myself. This is where my white board being a lifesaver allowed me to really visualise how I was spreading myself too thin. This leads me to my next point of : compartmentalise and prioritise ! On my white board I had 4 KEY things I wanted to do every week split into categories: Uni, Work, side projects and myself. There was a point I had four side projects going on at once. No this isn’t a good thing, in these moments I was left exhausted with constantly feeling uneasy as I knew there was always something next. I further split my white board into days. So 7 days and my tasks split across this. Having this visually presented in front of me helped me realise that I can't have more than 1 or 2 things related to an external project outside of my main purpose. At the time Uni and work were my main goals and tcim my main side project. That alone was enough to leave me exhausted. I took on more and while I don’t regret doing it at the time and enjoyed the main event of each thing, I knew I couldn't continue like that. So into 2021: I started to compartmentalise and prioritise my life and projects. My white board now isn’t allowed to have more than 4 main items on it per week. These bits are Work tcim ( yes a whole section on its own because it is important and no longer just this random thing I do) Side projects: only allowed to do one at a time and no more than 3 hours of my entire week Extra: this is food, exercise, and just things that I want to do If there is something new, I know that something in the four categories has to be removed because I am only one person and I can’t do everything. Now lets talk about doing more. For me to get to the position I was in in 2020, I had the goal of doing exactly what was preached. Trying new things and involving myself in things that interested me. In doing more it allowed me to figure out what I liked and most importantly disliked. The result... I am doing more with tcim, I evaluated where I wanted to be with it and I have clear goals of improving my writing, establishing myself and finding my feet in science communication and broadening the reach of the career profiles. For that i STILL have to do more. It's scary forcing yourself to do more but as the quote or all the Instagram posts I have seen. There is no growth INSIDE your comfort zone. If you are way too comfortable with every aspect and feel there is no room for improvement this is most likely untrue. Doing more also doesn't have to be in line with academia or putting yourself out there it could be spending more time on yourself and nurturing relationships you once neglected because you were so busy with the outside world. It wouldn’t be a tcim post without self reflective questions. So sit and think about the following How long does it take you to complete a full task ? How do you plan? - is it effective, do you not have a plan, do you feel you need one? Where should you be doing more or less?

A dream A passion A purpose Let’s leave reality for a moment and go into that little bubble in your mind where dreams are a reality and all you want to do is achievable. What do you want to do? I want you to pause for a moment and really think about it? Okay, were back. When thinking about my future plans the easiest thing to do was to really write down everything I could possibly think of on a piece of paper. I didn’t think about all the reasons why I couldn’t do something because why limit my dreams. In order to merge reality to the dream world you need to start with a dream. From this you see key themes begin to arise. When I did my mind map two very important themes came about. I wasn’t done with science and wanted to be challenged I wanted to help people These two ideas were centred in the roles I wanted to pursue. In identifying what I wanted it made it easy to eliminate the options that didn’t align with these goals. The steps that followed were setting time lines within reality that could match these goals. Example The science bit: I want to do a Phd: At the point of making my mind map, I was doing my masters and that gave me a 4 year timeline. 1 year to take a break and plan for the Phd, 3 years to actually pursue the Phd. It also helped me answer questions of the type of Phd I wanted. It made me open up my choices from something solely science based to things that incorporated communication or even looking for roles that could merge my love for science outside a Phd. The helping people bit: For a very long time my definition of helping people was wrapped in healthcare. I didn’t think I could use tcim( my blog) to fully help people and maybe that’s why I would shy away from talking about it or even executing the ideas I had, that has changed now ! Another thing about finding a career I have found useful is looking beyond the title and delving into the description of a few job titles and narrowing that down. Who knows, your “dream” job could already exist and really and truly with the world we live in, there is every possibility that you can create it ! Back to reality now, you can’t just wish away barriers or pretend they no longer exist forever. With your goals now set and somewhat realistic, you can no fill in the barriers. Do you lack training, opportunities, money? All these things can be fixed to some capacity. In understanding your limitations you can still dream but also accept the reality of why you aren't achieving the goal. Everyday isn’t sunshine and daisies and living in reality shouldn’t be you crushing your dream but knowing that you may need to extend and alter certain timelines or focus on particular areas for growth. In a very long winded way this is my way of saying don’t be afraid to dream and put yourself out there! ( These posts are me talking to myself so I'm not here yet but definitely trying !

This is a follow up blog post based on a discussion between @theworldofamran and @thecatalystinme on IG LIVE. You can watch the live back HERE. The theme of the live: Are vaccines the ONLY end to the pandemic?. In summary, there is no clear answer to this question! Vaccines are a way of easing the effects of the pandemic, but not the only way out. Until transmission is reduced to very low and controlled levels even WITH a vaccine, social distancing measures and mask wearing will be “the new normal”. If you are in the UK, you may be aware of the vaccine priority list. The vaccine is being offered widely across vulnerable groups and key workers, if you don’t fall in these priority groups there will be some waiting time before you are offered the vaccine. So what should you be focusing on instead? In the live session we discuss having a stance on the vaccine prior to being offered and also making sure you read sources yourself. If you have vulnerable people in your life, it is also important you have discussions around vaccines and help them find the correct information. It is your body and it is especially important to make an informed choice. By the time “non-vulnerable/healthy” people are offered the vaccine, the short term effects of the vaccines (at least 1year) would have been studied and at best that is a considerable amount of time to look at the pros and cons to make a well-informed decision. There has been an overwhelming amount of COVID-19 information. So here is a list of sources to read and follow up on. This post is written based on the most common questions that came up during the live session and other points that we have seen come up a lot. The resources listed here are specific to the UK. It can be applied to other countries, but it is best to follow your local health guidance and measures in place! Are vaccines the only end to the pandemic? The answer is no! Pandemic responses are multi-faceted. The COVID-19 vaccine has been developed to prevent severe illness from the disease and as a result reduce the likelihood of death. There have been countries that have successfully controlled the pandemic to get life back to some form of normality. The measures implemented in these countries have been a mix of lockdowns and high compliance of the public, all before vaccines were rolled out. This has been fully discussed in an earlier blog post: the world can handle the covid-19 pandemic. When looking at vaccine efficacy (effectiveness) news, it is very important to remember the vaccines have been proven to reduce severe disease. A key end to the pandemic is reducing deaths AND transmission. Transmission hasn’t been investigated in the vaccine trials and it is quite hard to understand! Face masks, isolation, handwashing and social distancing are effective measures in reducing transmission and as mentioned before, these guidelines will need to stay in place until transmission levels are low AND controlled. Basic and simple public health measures will always be in place! With the vaccine there are many unknowns that will be discovered as time goes on. COVID-19 research will require a heavy chunk of research budgets for the foreseeable future! But there are two questions asked that I want to focus on. Can I catch COVID-19 after taking the vaccine? Do I need the vaccine if I had COVID-19? As mentioned earlier, there is little information on how the COVID-19 vaccine affects transmission of the disease. A key feature of the COVID-19 vaccine is to reduce symptoms and for those reasons many people were followed up based on presenting symptoms of COVID-19 and not a positive PCR test while in the trials. What has been found is that COVID-19 patients following an infection have natural immunity for around 5 months. However, what must be remembered is that this does not mean that they are not infectious or unable to transmit the disease. There is a lot of effort and research going into answering this specific question of transmissibility! When that answer does come, this could change what the new normal looks like! Severe events due to COVID-19 infection have been linked to higher viral loads and in theory, if the vaccines lower severe events by decreasing the viral load - this could have an effect on decreasing transmission. As the transmission rates are loosely dependent on the viral load present in an individual to spread the virus. Specific Vaccine resources Vaccine post written on this blog as part of TCIM conversations: A series exploring public perception of science. Basics of vaccines-What are they and why are they important? Should I take the Covid-19 vaccine: What is in it, why is it important ( written in July) Vaccine safety reports ( Pfizer, Oxford and Moderna: the candidates approved for use in the UK) The Links provided lead you directly to official pages with safety documents. I have also included links to summarised Instagram posts of the safety data summarised published in November of the three candidates. Pfizer Phase 1 published data safety, Full protocol , Extended Safety data Oxford Astrazeneca Main Website Moderna : FDA page on trial data Extra resources on vaccines British Society of Immunology NHS page on vaccines Covid-Recovery What will the new normal look like? How can things get back to normal? Will schools, shops and places of worship open like before? If I decide NOT to get vaccinated? What are the effects on my family and community? The above questions are all extremely important. To get back to normal, we need to all comply with guidelines as best as possible. The aim should be to get cases to zero and make isolation when infected with COVID-19 a simple process with minimum disruption to everyday life. A huge problem in the UK is compliance to isolation after infection with COVID-19. The BMJ highlights that “ self-isolation in those who are infected or else are contacts of those who test positive for the virus are estimated to be around 18%.”Your first thought may be that people are selfish but as highlighted in this Guardian article, it is a complex situation. Unless you are provided with a safe place to isolate and don't have financial burdens, then it is very difficult to stay isolated for the full period of 14 days. For further reading follow the hashtag #SupportToIsolate on Twitter. If you decide not to get vaccinated, if put simply, the likelihood of you suffering from severe disease from COVID-19 is increased. At the time of this post being released, the vaccine doesn’t reduce the risk of catching COVID-19 nor transmitting it as stated above. With a recent report by The Guardian reporting 72% of Black people unlikely to take the vaccine, now more than ever we need to continue to think about vaccine hesitancy and the root causes. This plays a huge role in protecting our loved ones that are most at risk from severe disease and even more so with the new variants of COVID-19 which is no longer specifically targeting the old and vulnerable. Sadly, with the increase of loss of life, not only just of the elderly, but also younger and healthier populations, we just don’t know how an individual's body will react to being exposed to the disease. There are also many more reports of ‘long COVID’ and the vaccine potentially reducing the effects of this (although evidence is pending). With the UK Planning to vaccinate everyone by mid July possibly, it is crucial now more than ever to get informed! Will there be more lockdowns? We are ALL tired. While you can’t predict the future and everyday with COVID-19 circulating, it is a learning curve and also extremely tiring when thinking about the future. Countries like China that had a strict lockdown, although successful at controlling the outbreak, are now experiencing a new cluster of cases and a localised lockdown. Pandemic fatigue is a huge issue. On our THIRD lockdown in the UK with unclear guidance, sometimes it is difficult to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Personally I am struggling with this third lockdown as it is hard to see an end, especially when the government hasn't shown many signs of good leadership. While lockdowns are an effective public health measure to identify and isolate cases, an interesting article published by stanford researchers, highlighted that strict lockdowns do not have the benefit of completely controlling the virus. The article summarises comparisons of countries that had strict lockdowns versus countries with more relaxed approaches to find that where transmission of the virus is not controlled, lockdowns may not be the most effective! "In other words, it is possible that stay-at-home orders may facilitate transmission if they increase person-to-person contact where transmission is efficient such as closed space" Following on from that article, it is clear that in order to stay safe, we need to make simple things like hand washing and mask wearing (especially the latter) second nature. By observation, people wear masks more because they ”have” to and less because they want to. I believe I will keep wearing a mask on public transport long after the rules are relaxed. But for the time being, it is important you can answer these questions: What are the different types of masks available and what protection do they offer? How to dispose or reuse masks properly? How to wear masks properly? When don’t I need to wear a mask? What is the difference between a mask and a face covering? All the questions above are answered in the WHO guidance on when and how to wear masks. We want lockdown to end. So how do you risk assess the situation of meeting people in public once the time comes? You really shouldn't be meeting people right now, but are good to keep in mind when the outside slowly opens. These guides and articles will help you understand the risk and exposure to COVID-19. This will help you make responsible decisions once restrictions ease and the country reopens, so we can get out of this constant cycle of lockdowns and uncertainty. Risk assessment quiz to limit your chances of spreading and catching Covid-19 The spread of Covid-19 Indoors Should I be worried about the new variants? At the time of writing this post, there are 3 known COVID-19 variants present in the UK. For someone without a science background, getting into the specifics can be quite confusing and even from someone with a science background, it can be quite overwhelming! For now, the only worry about these variants is that they seem to be more transmittable between people and hence the soaring infection rates. Currently, there is no evidence that the variants are more deadly or the vaccine candidates being rolled out won’t work against them. If the constant updates are stressful, no matter the variant; social distancing, mask wearing and handwashing rules remain the same! How can I follow correct information? If you decide to not take the vaccine, it is a personal choice and if you are young and healthy it may not be important to you (YOU THINK?). As we have seen with the increase in COVID variants, anyone can be affected by hospitalisation. You taking the vaccine will reduce your chances of hospitalisation. If you decide not to take it, it is important to not impose your personal views on others and let them make a decision based on their own research and findings. Do not attempt to convince family members based on biased views with little to no medical evidence. With any doubts, there are many immunologists and Drs that have a wealth of resources for you to look through and community discussions with professionals as well! While the news is a great source of information, it does sometimes offer a lot of confusion as headlines can be politicised. It’s okay to take a break from constant updates. WHO resource on the covid-19 infodemic More Resources People / pages to follow Kizzmekia Corbett : Immunologist and one of the lead scientists that developed the Moderna Vaccine (Read more) Science.sam: Science communicator based in Canada Dr esmeralda Infectious disease doctor in the UK that often answers questions in her stories about vaccines Dr Samira Hassan: GP in the UK and VP of British Somali Medical Association Virus.vs.labcoat : Immunologist PhD student in Australia with a wealth of posts on understanding immunity Podcasts Coronavirus: What You Need To Know - ITV News How To Vaccinate The World - BBC Four The COVID Vaccine - What You Need To Know and Why You Should Get It With Dr Jessica Sacher Vaccine Infodemiology (COVID-19 Immunity) with Jessica Malaty Rivera Community Conversations on COVID-19 and Vaccines COVID-19 Vaccines: Your Questions Answered - Hosted by Asian Resource Centre Croydon (ARCC) CAHN Health Hour: COVID Vaccine Panel - Hosted by Carribean and African Health Network (CAHN) DrFuraha_Asani : Vaccines in Pop culture Upcoming Webinars: Thursday 21 January 2021 - Ubele Talking Points: The Vaccine Conversation Friday 29 January 2021 - COVID-19 Vaccination and BAME Population For the latest information on COVID-19: NHS https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/ UK Government: https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus World Health Organization (WHO): https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019

This is post 1 of a 7 part series ! How do you get your dream career? Your current job should lead to you building your dream career ! So how bad do you want your current career aspirations? job1 /dʒɒb/ a paid position of regular employment. career /kəˈrɪə/ an occupation undertaken for a significant period of a person's life and with opportunities for progress. Being able to understand the length you would go for your goal helps you weed out the options that you don’t feel are worth the stress. This is not to encourage toxic working situations but acknowledging your limits and setting boundaries to make sure that they aren’t crossed! Being able to narrow this down allows you to understand your options and only focus on a few. Knowing what you want comes with honest self reflection and pin pointing your main motivational factor. Motivation comes in waves and determination and consistency is what drives your goals to make them a reality. Its a weird cycle though, without motivation you can’t be determined and consistent. You may pick a particular career because of money and that is okay! We all need money and I want to be a rich aunt with a private island in some version of my life. Financial stability is important and if your current situation calls for that you will have real decisions to make! You may have realised that you’re not done learning, exploring and will choose further study and in another sense you may not see a future in your current field so need to plan an exit strategy. Humans learn by example so lets use me ? Who am I: a medical physiology graduate with a masters in medical ultrasound where my masters was chosen to provide me the job security a lab based degree doesn't offer. Two months into my degree I knew I wanted to do something else and the hospital environment wasn't where I wanted to be. Not that I couldn't do it but I appreciated basic science more ! This feeling brought me back to my initial decision not to pursue medicine. At the time I couldn’t pin point it but I just knew It wasn’t for me.When looking to alternatives to medicine the option of pursuing a Physician's associate degree came up and my dad asked the very simple question “ Why not a Doctor” . The role of a PA is similar to Medicine so indeed a very good question.This isn't to say a PA is not as good as a doctor, but if I had really wanted it, I would have been able to justify my reasons and tell him it was the career for me ! This was the same for my msc. The obvious career path was an Echocardiographer . I couldn't see myself in that role for anything longer than I had to be in it. I had conversations with someone amazing on twitter far along in her career and I just couldn’t see myself in the role. She also mentioned I had more passion talking about lab work ! I stuck with that point and let it guide my job search. So pandemic, I had two options further additonal training to get the hospital job I had initially planned or pack it in and try something else. The added training I needed to do wasn't worth it to me and certainly didn't interest me as much as basic science. My msc experience was all forms of negative so that is where I set my boundaries of not dying for academia and dropped my hopes of a Phd in that exact same field. The Phd thing is still an option but How bad I want it is still up for debate. I am taking the year as it comes and trying to enjoy the present. I have set my boundaries of prioritising my mental health and realising that things take time while continuing to find myself outside of academia. Note: me writing this post makes it sound like a smooth process but throw in trying to make proper career decisions and a pandemic and it was what I will call STRESSFUL ! I made it out Alhamdullilah because I cant finish this point without saying God really took me through it ( sorry if you aren't religious lol) To end, remember you don’t need to have all the answers but you should have checkpoints with yourself to assess how bad you want something. Regular checkpoints help build motivation and to be productive you must have the most efficient strategy and to know this you need to constantly self evaluate your outlook on your career. If the job or route is no longer serving it s purpose, don’t be afraid to move on ! To end. Here are two TCIM career profiles that are shining examples of determination and following a career based on desire and not time limits set by the outside world. Both Lynn and Adama decided to pursue a career in Medicine much later than the usual grad entry route. Adama Fullah ( Pharmacovigilance consultant to Medicine) Lynn Asante-arae ( Phd Cancer Biology to Medicine)

Name: Amran Mohamed Course/ job: Research Project Manager A levels/ equivalent: Biology, Psychology & Economics with AS in Chemistry Undergrad and post grad degrees :BSc Biology , MPH Public Health Favourite science fact: You have more bones in your body when you are born compared to when you’re an adult!!! Journey in 3 Words: Dynamic, Exciting & Fun • Briefly describe your role or course : I’m currently a research project manager at an NHS trust responsible for an NIHR/UKRI funded COVID-19 and ethnicity community intervention study. My interests lie in supporting marginalised groups build healthier and stronger communities. My BSc in Biology was very broad allowing for a degree of flexibility across the spectrum from biochemistry to conservation whilst my MPH in Public Health focused on human health and health systems and covered aspects from public health practice, epidemiology & statistics to health economics, systems & policy. I also specialised in Global Health. What motivated you to pursue a career in science :I always had an interest in the natural world when I was growing up and the study of life always intrigued me. I had amazing science teachers at school who really believed in me! What advise would you give on picking universities: I think it’s important to choose the course rather than the university. I think university is really what you make of it, and I always remind the younger generation that it is important to choose what you’d like but also to look at aspects of what opprotunities choosing a particular university will bring you. By all means, Russel Group universities can be great but they are not the be all and end all. I had the most amazing time during my undergrad degree and I thought I wouldn’t because I didn’t get into my first choice - but it’s really about making the most of your time and seeking opportunities whenever you can! What career paths did you feel were available to you before you started your course :I would say that I was quite lucky to secure a graduate job quite rapidly after my undergraduate degree, so I had a pretty solid plan and career progression route. But after working for almost two years I realised that this path was not for me, and that I couldn’t see myself doing a lab based masters (Mres) or a PhD in the biological sciences. I knew that my outreach work would always be a very small part of my role in academia and if I wanted to work in public health that the minimum requirement would be a Masters. What were your perceptions of being a scientist before you started your masters course :Working in an academic institution prior to beginning my course gave me an insight into the aspects of research that I liked and what I didn’t like. I went into my masters with a plan that I wouldn’t necessarily go down the research route in terms of the scientific aspect, but that I would want to focus on what skills I could gain and theory that I could learn to prepare me for a career that would allow me to serve my community and not a life in the lab that I came to dislike over the years. What did you enjoy the most about your masters course :My cohort during my masters was very international and I always valued this when I was doing my undergraduate degree. You learn so much from people who come from different backgrounds, countries etc. I also enjoyed the aspect of bringing together so many different subject areas under the umbrella of public health; both the social & humanities aspect but also scientific element. How have your previous experiences played a part in your career path :I took a 2 year break in between my undergraduate degree and my postgraduate degree to enter the working world. I think that definitely gave me an insight into what I like and what I don’t like. It was important for me to do so because if I had done a masters two years ago it would have been a completely different subject area (and more along the lines of life sciences) When considering your career path, how much has your potential salary affected your decision? : I would say that I never moved into Public Health for the money, but I knew that pursing a MPH would make my salary increase very quickly in comparison if I had remained in my old role and worked my way up. Where do you see yourself in 5 years : If I answered this at the beginning of my MPH I would’ve said somewhere abroad working within the UN system. But now, my outlook has very much changed because I see how much needs to be worked on in our own communities and to be given the opportunity to lead a national study is something that I wouldn’t have even imagined doing in 5 years time, let alone right now. So only time will tell! Outside science how would you describe yourself : I dabble in a bit of everything, from hosting events and community conversations to travelling the world and writing my blog. I also recently started podcasting and utilising IG live to engage others in community engagement and public health! Connect with Amran Twitter: @AmranMR_ & @theworldofamran Instagram: @theworldofamran Wordpress: theworldofamran.wordpress.com

Name:Amy Brennan (she/her) Job: Science Writer A levels/ equivalent :Biology, Chemistry, Maths (AS Further Maths, Geology) Undergrad and post grad degrees :MBioMedSci (Integrated Masters) Biomedical Science Favourite science fact:If the DNA in one of your cells was uncoiled, it would be about 2m long. The fact that so much DNA is packed so tightly in such a tiny space (about 6 microns) always amazes me. Journey in 3 Words :Unexpected, Exciting, Marathon Briefly describe your role I work as a science writer for a Marketing/PR agency that focuses on scientific companies. I create all sorts of content for scientific companies’ marketing and PR campaigns including writing articles for industry publications, social media posts, press releases and infographics. What motivated you to pursue a career in science I’ve always been a really inquisitive person, as a kid my favourite word was “why?” and I did everything I could to find the answer! I quickly realised that science was my favourite subject at school because it was all about answering that very question. I chose Biology as an A-Level and loved human biology so studying Biomedical Science at university was a no-brainer for me. At university I realised that I wasn’t very talented in the lab and found the experience really frustrating, what I was great at however, was really good at explaining the science I was learning and thought that science communication might be a better career choice. For my masters I chose to research how accessible scientific papers were, it was a subject I was really passionate about and I decided I wanted a career in science communication. What career paths did you feel were available to you before you started your course I honestly thought that everyone that did Biomedical Science went into a research career, either in academia or industry. When I began my course, I was perfectly okay with that as I thought that was what I wanted to too. However, as with most things in life, it didn’t quite work out the way I thought it would. I was close to useless in the lab and it was only then that I realised the huge range of science communication jobs available to me. What advice would you give on picking universities Decide on your personal priorities. University is an incredibly individual decision and you have to choose based on what’s important to you. It could be the course content, the practical/lectures split, or the location. University can be one of the best times of your life but you need to make the decision that’s best for you. So before you start looking, set your priorities and compare universities based on those, not on other people’s opinions or on league tables. What transferrable skills do you use from your degree now in your job I use so many transferable skills in my job. The first is the ability to research and determine the reliability of information. Being a science writer means I have to become an “expert” on a huge range of topics at pretty short notice. The ability to critique information sources really helps me excel in my job. I also learnt some great time management skills during my degree, this was possibly one of my greatest achievements as I started university as a serial procrastinator. I work for a number of clients, so my to do list can get pretty busy. Being able to manage my time is really important in ensuring that to do list gets finished at the end of the week. Group work was my least favourite part of my degree, leaving my marks in the hands of others was really stressful, but in the “real world” group work is the most important part of my job. I collaborate on so many projects and working as part of a team is actually really enjoyable! What advice would you give on dealing with rejection and perseverance? Dealing with rejection can be really tough, I have definitely had a few crises of confidence from job rejections, coursework results and failed experiments. However, being a scientist comes with a lot of failure; experiments that don’t work, papers that don’t get accepted and jobs/programmes we don’t get accepted for. My key piece of advice is keep a record of your wins: any good feedback, any positive comments. Revisit them when you’re questioning yourself to remind yourself that you are successful and talented and that things will all work out in the end. When considering your career path, how much has your potential salary affected your decision? Ultimately, salary hasn’t been a deal breaker in choosing a career. Job satisfaction has always been the most important thing for me, and I prioritise having a job I really enjoy. Outside science how would you describe yourself I’m a really passionate person, I love sports and music and spend most of my free time pursuing these. I play Gaelic football and love to play the guitar to relax. I’m bubbly and definitely people person. I’m an extrovert and love being around other people but I also love to relax in a hot bath with a face mask and a glass of gin! Connect with Amy Instagram: @amysciencewriter

Name: Jason Amartey Course/ job :PhD Researcher (cardiovascular science) A levels/ equivalent :Biology, Chemistry and Physical Education Undergrad and post grad degrees Bsc Biomedical Sciences, Mres Biomedical Science Favourite science fact There is more variation between black people than there is between a black person and a Caucasian Journey in 3 Words : Shoot your shot (I say this because there are many opportunities, I didn’t think I would get but I still went for it and ended up being successful so shoot your shoot always) Briefly describe your role or course My research is based on the revascularisation of ischaemic diseases, particularly focused on the role of splicing factors and kinases and their effect on ischaemic diseases such as peripheral vascular disease. What motivated you to pursue a career in science I wanted to live a life where I was involved in improving people’s lives. A career in Science (specifically in medicine and health gives me opportunity to be a part of improving lives) What advice would you give someone wanting to follow the same path? Be flexible and open to opportunities. Life is full of up of surprises so enjoy the process. Its important to have confidence in your abilities. Be open to learn new things and new ways of doing things and most importantly be prepared to work hard!!! How did you know a PhD was for you? After an internship at the University of Uskudar in Istanbul Turkey, I did a master in research course which I thoroughly enjoyed, these two experiences helped make my mind up about a career in research and a PhD definitely had to be on the cards. How has the internship benefited your career progression and how did you even find or get it After my undergrad, I did an internship at Uskudar University  in Istanbul, Turkey as part of the Erasmus program. This was such an amazing opportunity as it helped formulate an idea of the kind of career path I wanted to embark on. During my time there, I worked in a research group, Istanbul Protein Research& Innovation Centre that had interests in various topics, microbiology, genetics etc. I found this environment highly stimulating and knew I wasted to be in a role where everyone was working on different things albeit linked and discussing ideas. I had undergone an internship the year before in Malta and although I had enjoyed the experience, I knew that wasn't the career path for me. In turkey I felt a sting sense of this is what I want to be doing as a career and this led me to undertaking a masters in research followed by a job in research and now doing a Phd. I recommend doing some sort of placement/internship to anyone as it gives you experience which looks favourable on your CV as well as  helping you to figure out what you want to as a career. Both these experiences gave me that clarity for sure. How did your research job help you get your phd ? What was your typical month like in that role and Do you feel your masters better prepared you for your Phd? My job helped me get more research experience which has been useful for my phd journey thus far. I learnt many techniques and skills which I have been able to transfer on to this phd program. A typical month would involve various experiments on either short term or longer term projects, meetings to plan experiments and projects or to share data. My masters prepared me for my phd as it put me in a research environment, learnt research skills such as experimental design. I definitely think I felt more prepared than I would have been after my undergrad degree. What is your biggest pet peeve about how the world perceives science? I think a lot of people think a career in science is only for a certain type of people. People from all sorts of backgrounds are needed in science to bring about different ideas and to challenge the status quo. Outside science how would you describe yourself A bit of a joker, I love being sporty and keeping fit and active. I love reading and watching documentaries about the most random stuff which is very handy in quizzes. You are the Co-founder of Canvas of life – what inspired it how do you balance that with your PhD and where do you see the platform going? Canvas of life came from my friend and I having discussions on how we can have a positive impact of the world, inspire people to want to the very best versions of themselves. We wanted to present these in a variety of mediums to suit how different people consume content, podcasts, videos, and blogs. It can be a challenge balancing making content, marketing etc whilst pursuing a PhD, being organised definitely helps a lot, setting specific times to work on our brand makes it easier to balance both. When considering your career path, how much has your potential salary affected your decision? Not as much, money doesn’t fulfil you. I wanted to be in a career that stimulated me and I was able to be excited about going to work. Connect with Jason Twitter @Supermalt_papi Insta @jase.otu Canvas of life : All media platforms Instagram:@canvas.of.life_

With Covid news many people find themselves between fed up of the information or have completely switched off. Media reporting can often be skewed and our personal prejudices make us paint narratives in our heads. The global handling of the pandemic has shown many “western” nations fail woefully, Africa “spared” and many parts of South Asia control the spread. Probably not what we were expecting when it all started. While only a few places are completely covid free, there are many points to be made on the successes and failures. In this post I will go through them and how they relate to human behaviour while trying to understand the individual responsibility we all have for the central goal of worldwide normality. When reading this post I want your major takehome to be: The pandemic is controllable and the world can return to a form of normality. Failures The worst hit countries: United Kingdom(UK), United States(US), Brazil and India have similar approaches to how they have handled the virus. It is worth noting that India may be the only one of the group not pushing the strategy of herd immunity. Brazil has many similarities with the approach of the US and UK. In India, the spread started with imported cases of Covid-19 to which they implemented quarantine measures but something went wrong. India saw a 10 time increase in cases over 15 days in March. India is still struggling and for reasons that aren’t so simple. India is a country with great inequality and opposite to the west, lockdown is not as simple due to the structure of the economy and overpopulation of many large cities. Street trading is what a lot of people rely on. India again the anomaly of the three nations has conversely shown that where there is good guidance ,covid can be controlled. In a slum settlement Covid cases were reduced to 1.3 per 100,000. For every 100,000 people there were only 1.3 covid cases. Even with its success in a community,an extended lockdown will only lead to starvation and violence in the poorest communities. Brazil, just like India, has many large overpopulated cities and now has the second highest case rate after the USA. Brazil isn't even experiencing a second peak as the first one isn't over. Brazil has seen to date more than 5million cases and 160,000+ deaths. A key reason for Brazils “humanitarian disaster” points to the leadership. Political disagreement between local leaders, the scientific community and president Jair Bolsonaro being a key issue. The US and UK have been heavily hit for a bag of reasons. Lack of urgency, economic priority, denial and arrogance being the few I can name. The US have made it seem that Covid-19 isn’t real, being the country with the least measures taken and the highest number of cases.These two nations have portrayed themselves as scientific powerhouses and if anywhere was to be prepared it should be them. It is quite ironic how the UK is a leader in developing the covid-19 vaccine but can’t control the virus ( insert conspiracy theory). In the early happenings of the pandemic both nations lacked urgency with leaders stating covid isn’t a threat and once the threat was obvious due to cases rising and uncontrollable spread they became “tolerent” of the virus, supporting the herd immunity stance. 'Herd immunity', also known as 'population immunity', is a concept used for vaccination, in which a population can be protected from a certain virus if a threshold of vaccination is reached. Herd immunity is achieved by protecting people from a virus, not by exposing them to it. - WHO The herd immunity argument put by the leaders of the UK, US and Brazil is one with little to no standing . For more understanding read previous posts on vaccines: Part 1 and Part 2. Moving on from that, in the early months there seemed to be some sort of cohesion between the government and scientific advisors, but it seemed especially in the UK as time went on and the death toll of the virus became less of a worry, the government began to ignore scientific advice and prioritize the economy. While it is understandable a healthy balance is needed, stopping the virus and having systems in place would surely lead to a better economic situation than having the virus in full circulation. In the US, the tensions between the president and the scientific community is at an all time high with nature article detaiing“” How Trump damaged science” What the UK, US and Brazil lack is clear messaging.This is not due to lack of expertise. If you follow most scientists, professionals with knowedge on public health, vaccines and immunity you hear their frustrations. A lot, trying to stop the spread of misinformation, but that becomes difficult if the government is against you. Science and politics are at an all time disagreement when it comes to decision making for the nations. All three leaders ( Brazil, UK, USA) ignore scientific advice while ironically waiting for a vaccine to “save us all”. There is no sense of urgency to get rid of the virus but more of a “live with it approach. As the UK and most of Europe enter a second lockdown is the virus controllable? ” If you find yourselves in one of these nations, like I do… How does one “live with a virus? The Success stories Let’s start where it all began: Wuhan, China. Wuhan to date of this post had 25 daily cases compared to peak numbers in February of 6900. There has been discussion on how Wuhan handled the virus. In a financial times article they highlight the early “failings” where scientists and government didn’t disclose the human to human spread of the virus in early december. The article also commends the incredible work done to curb the spread, including the strict lockdowns and strong messaging used to get them to where they are now. Another example of success is Australia. Australia has reported close to zero coronavirus cases. Having experienced two waves, the first had a peak of approximately 430 cases and second 715 with current current cases now below 15. The approach taken by Australia was also one of no tolerance or room for the virus, similar to Wuhan and is only easing lockdown restrictions now. Other covid-19 successes include Hong kong where current peak daily cases do not exceed 200.Finally, Taiwan’s handling of covid has been nothing less than impressive ! In March, they had a peak of 26 cases and 3 deaths and Taiwan to date of this post has just 5 cases. They have also recently reported 200 days without local transmission of the virus, meaning cases were imported. Now, lets focus on Africa. The continent never seems to be the focus when things are good. Many attest the lack of viral spread due to preparedness and the very young median age of the continent. We know that covid affects the elderly more severely and that african nations have experience on mitigating the spread of disease: Ebola, Cholera, HIV, Malaria. African nations at the start of the pandemic were very strict in implementing border controls ( PCR testing at airports and temperature checks, which again is just becoming available in the UK ( not even PCR testing which is the gold standard). On the flipside some residents have also brought about arguments that there must be a biological explanation. The most popular suggesting a link between the popular hydroxychloroquine drug used - a common malaria treatment, to have provided some sort of protection against the virus or the simple answer of “ their immune system is built different” . Residents claim social distancing is now at a minimum and people aren't taking it as seriously. With the continent having collectively lower cases than some countries does give occupants a reason to relax. To readers that may be wondering if there is a link with hydroxychloroquine, unfortunately there isn’t and we’ll just have to accept preparedness as a reason for success. Hydroxychoroquine has been trialed and tested in many covid patients and not found to be effective in reducing symptoms of the illness or decreasing chances of death. In many papers there was what seemed to be conflicting data around hydroxychloroquine as being an effective treatment. Without going into the “science” of it all, the main findings explain that the drug when used as a treatment in large studies has not been shown to improve patient recovery and with the added risk of heart rhythm complications it is not recommended. The studies that “supported” the use of the drug were ones that were found to have relatively small sample sizes and in many cases poorly designed. Having seen what the world could look like without Covid-19 or with “manageable cases” I ask again…. How does one “live with a virus” ? In the spirit of living with it? How many people are aware of the long term effects that covid-19 could possibly have or the damaging effects it has on people vulnerable: financially or health wise. While we decide to live with it, are we thinking solely from an individualistic point of view or as a community, The former holds. A person with “pre existing conditions cannot just “live with” the threat of a virus daily, shielding will not work forever but what will work is a community centred approach like the aforementioned successful nations. A plan of action that involves all parties and a clear strategy of “no tolerance”. A second stance on “living” with the virus is taking part in vaccination trials if the herd immunity strategy is one you believe in . For herd immunity to work there needs to be a working vaccine for the entire world population. As vaccine trials expand the worry of the data not being representative of communities hit the worst are things we have to come to terms with. In Brazil, UK and US black people are found to ne more affected by the virus and not because of genetic bullshit reasons but the reality of the world we live in. Poor access to health care, racisim and lack of trust in systems. When we get the vaccine who will it be given to first and how effective will it be? In my first mini project on public perception of science, of 145 responders, only and handful said they will take the vaccine! The Black commmunity have a lot of reasons to mistrust science so to think living with a virus thats main hope is a cure from science is a long stretch. While we wait for a vaccine we need to mend the relationship between science and the general public and also find a way to get politics to work towards the policies that will benefit all of society and not the elite. To end, how do we handle covid-19? Could it be as simple as monitoring borders, temperature checks and readily available PCR test? Should there have been stricter lockdowns worldwide or do we wait for vaccinations and continue the dangerous balancing act? Is it so hard to beleive that in order to move on and not be devastated by covid -simple approaches work as long as there is clear messaging, trust and guidance? Recommended Articles I have followed covid-19 updates since March. Here a few of the articles I highly recommend reading to get an even better picture of things happening. Alternatively you can follow me @AhhdamnHer or @catalystinme_and never miss my random updates. Previous Vaccine posts Should I take the covid:19 vaccine? General overview of vaccines and how they work Tcim: Public perception of science: Videos on how vaccines work, explaining wrong doings of science and more. Covid-19 Herd Immunity WHO Asia Taiwan just went 200 days without a locally transmitted Covid-19 case. Here's how they did it The worlds Biggest slum stopped the virus China and Covid-19: what went wrong in Wuhan? Don't Ignore the Good News On Covid-19 From Asia India’s COVID-19 cases have declined rapidly—but herd immunity is still far away, scientists say Africa Africa’s low COVID-19 death rate has multiple causes, WHO says Africa has defied the covid-19 nightmare scenarios. We shouldn’t be surprised. Europe Reaction to Tier Lockdown system in the England Scientists warn of new coronavirus variant spreading across Europe Americas How Trump damaged science — and why it could take decades to recover

Name: Nxalati Mkhombo Course/ job: PhD candidate: Molecular and Cell Biology A levels/ equivalent: Mathematics, Life science, Geography and Physical Science Undergrad and post grad degrees: BSc (honours) Biochemistry, MSc Biochemistry Favourite science fact: The typical volume of blood lost during menstruation is approximately 30 mL Journey in 3 Words: Challenging, fun and rewarding Briefly describe your role or course: I work on a project that is based on understanding the mechanisms by which contraceptives may change levels of the hormone estrogen, which may then affect how easily women are infected with HIV. What motivated you to pursue a career in science: I enjoyed science in high school. I have a very curious nature and I am a problem solver at heart. Pursuing a career in science made sense to me because I was merging my passions and personality to contribute to making the world better and impact lives. Work- Life Balance: Having a work-life balance is important to me. I value my work but it is not the only thing that is important to me, so I am mastering the art of managing myself, instilling boundaries and creating space for everything that makes me who I am to happen in its time. What advice would you give someone wanting to study the same degree?: Never stop insisting on yourself. It’s not easy (and in a way you can say that that’s what makes it fun) but that’s not a dismissal or to say you can’t do it! So, stay the course and allow yourself to learn. How did you know a pHd was for you? : Doing my master’s degree reemphasized my love for research. Doing a PhD felt like a commitment I was making to grow as a researcher in a field I am passionate about. It’s also a challenge I wanted to take on. What is your biggest pet peeve about how the world perceives science: That scientists look a certain type of way (most of the time male and white) and talk a certain type of way. But in actual fact, anyone can be a scientist. Outside science how would you describe yourself: I am someone who enjoys the outdoors a lot! I love exploring new places and being in nature. I love running, spending quality time with friends and family and reading good books. When considering your career path, how much has your potential salary affected your decision? Not much. Up until now I’ve made career decisions based on my career goals, where I want to go and what I want to achieve. It’s been a blessing that those decisions came with a salary that I could use to take care of myself. So, money is important and I want [need] it but it hasn’t been the driving force of my career decisions. Where do you see yourself in 5 years: Hhhmmmm I hope this post inspires you to follow your passions and acknowledge that at every stage of your career will involve perseverance, consistency and discipline to help you achieve your desired goal. Never forget that “ no accomplishment is too small and no goal is too high” To never miss another career profile subscribe :) The following links will further help you with your career search: https://www.visibilitystemafrica.com/ https://www.prospects.ac.uk/ https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/explore-roles https://www.allaboutcareers.com/careers/career-path/life-sciences https://www.jobs.ac.uk/careers-advice/job-profiles/2418/what-jobs-could-i-do-in-life-sciences

Name: Rachel Lambert-Forsyth (she/her) Job Title: Chief Executive, British Pharmacological Society and Managing Director of BPSA Ltd A levels/ equivalent: Biology, Chemistry, Psychology and Theatre Studies A Levels Undergrad and post grad degrees: BSc Marine Biology and Coastal Ecology and MSc Sustainable Environmental Management Favourite science fact: Barnacles have evolved the longest penis of any animal for their size - up to 8 times their body length - so they can find and fertilise distant neighbours. I loved being told this on a rocky shore in the South West when studying – my 2 primary age son’s also love it! Journey in 3 Words: Rapid Exciting Supportive Briefly describe your role: Working closely with our Trustee Board and the senior management team, I am responsible for delivering the vision, mission and strategy of the British Pharmacological Society, and its subsidiary company (BPSA Ltd). What motivated you to pursue a career in science: I have always loved the natural world and had an affinity with the marine environment since a young age. I studied marine biology, and then went on to study sustainable environmental management as I found out in my undergraduate degree that whilst I loved the outputs of scientific research, I was a really bad research scientist! It was the combination of my love of scientific evidence, informed debate, and policy development, that eventually brought me to my roles within the scientific learned society world. What advice would you give someone wanting to follow the same path? Firstly, go for it! Secondly be open to opportunities and do not worry too much about following the same path as others. I initially felt like a bit of a failure that my degree didn’t lead to working in the ocean or within the marine sector. Overtime I realised that my degree set me up for a really exciting career and that an education in biological sciences provides many transferrable skills that are attractive to employers (more on that later). What advice would you give your younger self: Take up any opportunities to grow your CV (within reason – don’t over stretch yourself!) and learn from those you admire, actively seek out opportunities to gain experience, and don’t be afraid to ask for support. What transferrable skills do you use from your degree now in your job: My degree taught me to analyse data and consider all the evidence in front of you before making a decision. It was in my Masters that I learnt to debate and discuss ideas, challenge the status quo, and bring together multiple disciplines to answer big societal questions from a societal, economic and scientific view point. It also developed my communication skills so that I could discuss complex ideas in a clear and concise manner. What advice would you give on dealing with rejection and perseverance? Don’t give up – seek constructive feedback but then consider it carefully, and only act on it if you feel it fits your values. Also, I would say that it is fine to mourn an opportunity that you don’t achieve – that is natural human behaviour. Once you have dealt with this emotion – then objectively look at what you wanted from it and look for other opportunities that meet that need. Each rejection is an opportunity to learn, but it might not always feel like that, and that is ok. How do you feel careers in your field have evolved / where are they heading to? In the learned society sector we have evolved over the years to be much more than just an ‘old boys club’ or ‘elite society’ to a sector that champions our disciplines and the scientific advances our members are making through meetings and journals and showcases the diversity of our members. We support and welcome the next generations into our community, helping them as they navigate through various career stages and evolving our offer to meet their needs, now and into the future. For my current community, pharmacology and therapeutics is advancing all the time, COVID-19 and the work of pre-clinical and clinical pharmacologists to support the development of therapeutics to treat this new virus, is a good example of our members’ work in practice. However for more detailed information I would recommend taking a look at our new careers pages, where a lot more detail can be found. When considering your career path, how much has your potential salary affected your decision? Not at all really; but equally I would not be honest if I did not admit that sometimes the jobs I applied to were more attractive because the salary was supportive of my wider aspirations to secure a positive financial future for my family. However, I would never take a job just for the money, I am ultimately driven by the need to make a difference, and add value, so these values will always come first. Connect with Rachel on LinkedIn: Rachel Lambert-Forsythe Twitter: @RLambertForsyth Learn more about the British Pharmacological Society