By Rebecca Woodrow
Many of us will be thinking of our career decisions right now- do I stay in academia or pursue industry? Do I really enjoy my current job? What is the next step for me? This month’s joint event with the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology (LMB) was a fantastic opportunity to explore these questions. We heard from three LMB alumni on their respective career paths and what influenced their career decisions, with some inspiration along the way.
We first heard from Hayley Sharpe, a group leader at The Babraham Institute, on her journey from academia to industry and back again. She talked about the extremely diverse and rewarding learning experiences she gained from industry- and the challenges. The audience was very interested in her story of feeling like a failure, and how to move on from these challenges in a positive way. In the end, all of this experience (including the ‘failures’!) was instrumental in her current position as a Group Leader when coming back into academia.
Stephanie Pilkington was next to take the stage, and spoke about her varied career before becoming a patent attorney. Her talk was incredibly inspiring for the women in the room as Stephanie was the first female (and first part-time!) Board Member at her company. Recognising the great steps that women have made in the workplace, and through equality, diversity, and inclusion initiatives, also highlights the steps we still have to make in STEMM workplaces. Her talk concluded with some advice: learn from the best, and be you. This means thinking for yourself and believing in your future.
We finally heard from Anne Cooke, who has recently made a total career change from chief executive at the British Neuroscience Association, to head of learning and development in an events company. Her message was clear: don’t panic! There are so many ups and downs, and no single career journey follows a clear path. Anne showed us the variety of positions she has worked in after academia, and also spoke about how much she had learnt along the way. This included low points and struggling to work out the next step- something many of us in the audience could relate to. She also recommended that we identify mentors in our lives- particularly outside of work- who can give us impartial advice and act as a sounding board for these bigger career decisions.
Speaking with everyone in attendance after the talks was a great networking opportunity, and to meet many other people thinking about career changes. I am personally about to finish my PhD, so I am thinking about my own career a lot. This event with the LMB was a great way to talk to a great breadth of people with different experiences- and get a lot of advice! Thank you to all of the speakers, and to the LMB for hosting the fantastic event.