Researchers find all sorts of rewarding careers – smart people work everywhere!
Such diversity in potential roles can prove challenging when exploring your options. This collection of career profiles enables you to see what others in your position chose to do, why and how they made the move, and what they most enjoy about their job. You will get a feel for their daily activities, workplace culture and work-life balance.Top tip: Look out for authors’ insights into which skills developed during or after their PhD proved helpful in getting their job, and performing well there. You’ll be encouraged to see how people are building on their research expertise to thrive in newer roles.And don’t miss the “employer bio” at the end of each career profile for careers opportunities in each organisation.
Recent profiles
Milad Farshad
Researcher at CGGIn my case, it was the technical knowledge. However, a PhD is much more than that…
Rachael Hodge
Producer & Project Manager at Charisma Entertainment and The Oxford Research Centre for the HumanitiesLots of tech companies are looking for people with creative skillsets – there are many ways people from a humanities background can get involved!
Richard Huysmans
Senior Manager, Education and Business Development at Health Education Australia LimitedTake the risk! The worst thing that can happen is you go back to academia with a (relative) wealth of industry experience – especially compared to your colleagues. The best thing that could happen is you find a full-filling career.
Laura Mitchell
Principal Bioinformatician at Alchemab Therapeutics LtdI feel very fortunate to have done a year in industry placement as an undergraduate – it nudged me towards research projects with an applied focus from the very start.
Francesca Pietra
Director, Industry Partnerships and Commercialization (Partnerships Lead), Faculty of Engineering at Imperial College LondonI have always tried to understand what really motivates me and “gets me out of bed” in order to steer my decisions in that direction. It is also about taking opportunities that come by and sometimes taking a leap of faith
Sarah Atkinson
Assistant Director at Department of FinanceYou’re never going to have an epiphany about what to do next. You just have to pick something and try it.
Arijit Patra
Senior Principal Scientist at UCB PharmaBe like a cat. Cats don’t have imposter syndrome; each cat believes it’s the most special cat in the world. If you’re doing a PhD, be a cat.
Chiara Giuliano
Associate Director at AstraZenecachanging career path is not a failure, it is using your skills and knowledge to align yourself with your current needs and expectations.
James Larkin
CEO and Founder at OxomicsI’m getting to see the technology that I invented move from academia towards the clinic. The further I get down this process the more I can see the end result and it’s an exciting thing to observe.
Laurène Vetterli
Senior medical writer at Meridian HealthCommsTrust the process, be patient, trust yourself, there are always possibilities even when we stop seeing them
Jacqueline Robbins
Foundation Doctor at Oxford Health NHS Foundation TrustUse contacts to get advice and explore options. I wish I’d spoken to more people when I first applied for a medical degree as the advice I got was invaluable