Science Futures | Employability in Applied Sciences

I Gained a Summer Internship at Science Futures Fair 2023, Here’s How

Employability in Applied Sciences | 6 March 20236 March 2023

The Science Futures Fair is an annual event that provides a valuable platform for showcasing research and career opportunities in various scientific fields. This year, the fair was held at the UWE Bristol Enterprise Park and was attended by students across all years of study and numerous companies and professionals from across the country, making it an interesting and interactive experience for students to explore opportunities for the future.

One of the key benefits of the Science Futures Fair is that it provides a unique opportunity for students to explore different professional careers. With various stalls for students interested in fields like biomedical sciences, healthcare, and environmental sciences, there was something for everyone who attended. By interacting with different companies, I gained invaluable insights into potential career pathways.

LearnSci

During my visit to the Science Futures Fair, I was immediately drawn to the LearnSci stall, which showcased innovative teaching and learning resources for university science students. The team exhibiting at the stall were enthusiastic about the company and their products, and I took the opportunity to engage with them. During our conversation, I expressed my interest in science communication and digital illustration, which were well aligned with the company’s focus.

Summer Internship with LearnSci

Throughout my academic journey, I have been exploring how digital illustration can be applied in a scientific field. By creating posters and illustrations, I have honed my skills in this area. Following my interaction with the LearnSci team, I was thrilled to be offered an 8-week summer internship where I will create visual and informative media, such as infographics while working alongside the communications team at LearnSci.

Image taken from: https://www.learnsci.com/post/introducing-learnsci-our-new-brand

UWE Careers & Enterprise Session: Get the most out of Science Futures!

To prepare for the Science Futures Fair, I attended a talk organised by the Careers Team, which proved to be incredibly helpful. The preparation allowed me to develop thoughtful questions to ask the professionals and companies who attended the fair, which helped me to get the most out of the experience. By reflecting on my experiences and achievements at UWE, I was able to identify the key qualities that could be valuable to potential employers, which gave me the confidence to talk about my achievements and experiences.

Based on my own experience, I would highly recommend that students take the time to prepare for events like careers fairs. This could include researching the companies and professionals who will be attending, as well as exploring their LinkedIn pages and other social media platforms. By doing this research and preparation, students can come to the event armed with thoughtful questions and a better understanding of the companies they are interested in. This will allow them to make the most of their time at the fair and maximise the opportunities available to them.

In the Future

Attending the Science Futures Fair was an exciting and valuable experience that helped me discover potential career opportunities that I may have not encountered otherwise. Besides exploring the job and internship offerings, the fair provided a great networking platform to connect with other students in the science field. By participating in events like this, I gained a better sense of my career objectives and professional development as a student.

Overall, I strongly encourage other students to attend the Science Futures Fair in the future and to engage with the companies attending to explore the wide range of opportunities available. It’s also helpful to prepare for the event beforehand by researching the companies to make the most of the experience.

Enjoy reading and don’t forget to leave us a comment.

This article was written by Ilyssa Alagon, Second year undergraduate student in Biological Sciences at the School of Applied Sciences, University of the West of England, Bristol.

If you have any question about this article or want to write for the blog, get in touch with us via LinkedIn and Twitter. You can also contact the Editor for details.

DAS Monthly Employability Seminar: Finding Funding in STEM

Employability in Applied Sciences | 8 July 20218 July 2021

Following the March Department of Applied Sciences Monthly Employability seminar, Sophie, one of our writers, has excellently summarised and captured the essence of the talk delivered. If you are in search for or are suspecting you may need funding in the future, this article is definitely for you. Enjoy and be enriched as you read.

An essential part

Funding. The dreaded F word in the world of science and the topic of the March Monthly Employability Seminar. This talk was hosted by Dr David Fernandez – a primatologist and conservation biologist, and Dr Alex Greenhough – a cancer biologist and principal investigator on projects funded by a number of institutions, as well as being a frequent grant reviewer himself. Both lecturers were well versed in what it takes to be awarded funding, having both received grants from a vast number of various sources.

Places to start

Dr Fernandez started off the talk by explaining the different types of funding available from charities, government bodies and international organisations having various money pots. He then listed the steps for a successful proposal, which, as someone who loves writing lists, is very useful for, and of which I will keep for, any future applications (so that I can satisfyingly tick each section off one-by-one).

Writing a funding bid is all about selling your story. You are probably, and hopefully, extremely passionate about your research proposal and this is more than likely the biggest setback you are facing in launching your project. Use your passion to convince the organisation that this project is exciting, innovative and needed.

Things you need

You must have a clearly defined goal that is achievable so funders can easily understand what you intend for this project to accomplish. In addition to this, there needs to be a consistent message throughout; keep your idea simple and strong – don’t let them forget what the project is about.

You also need to demonstrate your ability to prove you can actually conduct the work. Do you have experience on this topic or will you be bringing in collaborators who do? Having experts involved reassures funders that you will be able to achieve what you set out to do. Therefore, if you are just starting out in the research world, using someone who already has a name for themselves will most likely provide you with an advantage. Your budget also needs to be feasible and realistic; make sure to check what can and can’t be covered by the funding and that you can justify every expense you deem as being necessary (you may want to get some insight on this from those who have had experience with funding before).

The final few stages bring the whole bid together by making sure your writing is clear, can be understood by non-experts of this topic, and ensure that you have adhered to the grant application guidelines. This applies even to things that may seem trivial, such as using a specific font size, layout etc. Funding is almost always highly competitive and if you can’t follow instructions, you probably won’t get the funding (first impressions of your application really do matter!). Finally, linking back to the first point, be convincing. You understand why your project is one of the most incredible things in the world, but they don’t, so tell them.

A smart approach

Both Dr Fernandez and Dr Greenhough expressed other important factors that are required for a successful funding campaign. One examples of this is finding the right funding body. This may seem obvious, but often projects do not meet all of the funding requirements and so this will waste yours, and the reviewer’s time.

The second top tip was about writing the proposal. These things, like everything in science, take a lot of time. Everything mentioned in your bid has to have a purpose and be completely accurate. There are questions you need to ask yourself: have you met their criteria? Are there any spelling or grammatical errors? Is your proposal reasonable, realistic, and correct? Dr Greenhough reiterated all of these points in his top tips for getting funding and provided us with an insight into how the grants are assessed and why they fail. These were simple, yet crucial, things such as checking if the project has already been done or assessing whether it is unrealistic – such as when someone asked for too little money for their project!

As an undergraduate looking for a Master’s degree, information like this is invaluable. Unfortunately, from personal experience I have found it to be near impossible to obtain funding for a Master’s project. Despite this, I know there will be many times in my life where I will have to spend my evenings calculating costs and filling out forms, trying to persuade people that my project is a worthy investment.

Final thoughts

Finding funding is a long, tedious and potentially frustrating experience. Dr Greenhough touched on the fact that you will get rejections, everyone does, but with everything in life, you have to keep persevering. This is the most important lesson I took away from the talk. Having the structure to write a funding bid is extremely important, but being prepared for reality and rejection is not only necessary, but reassuring to know it’s just an extra hurdle you have to face.

Finally, thank you to David and Alex for taking the time to share their insider knowledge, and to the Department of Applied Sciences for organising such a useful talk.

Thank you for reading.

Written by Sophie Harris

Edited by Jessica Griffith

Sophie Harris

Sophie is in her third and final year at the University of the West of England studying Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Science. She is the creator of Peculiar Pangolins, a blog dedicated to all things pangolins related and has been invited to Uganda to see Chester Zoo’s Giant Ground Pangolin project.

Whilst on a six-month internship monitoring wildlife on a game reserve in South Africa, she fell in love with the world’s most trafficked mammal, the pangolin. After being fortunate enough to see one in the wild, she decided to apply to university, to help these illusive creatures. She was also the creator and President of the Wildlife & Environment Society in my first and second years.

In Sophie’s spare time she can be found in nature reserves, mostly looking for birds to add to her list, or climbing, either indoors or out, depending on the weather.

Note from the editor: Thank you for taking the time to read this article. We hope you feel more informed and assured that whilst the journey to obtaining funding in launch of your project can often take some time, with perseverance, you can successfully secure funding and lift your project off the ground.

As always, we welcome new contributions to our blog, whether it’s by sending us an article or joining our team of writers. If you are interested, please do get in touch with us by emailing ScienceFutures@uwe.ac.uk. You can also connect with us on LinkedIn and Twitter!

Until next time, take care and enjoy your summer!

Up and Beyond the Labs | From UWE to Space

Employability in Applied Sciences | 12 April 202112 April 2021

Piotr has written yet another excellent article to explore another dimension of science; space. Many scientists dream of doing things on Earth, but if you are interested in expanding your scope and exploring your curiosity, have a read of this article as you begin your scientific journey in space.

The beginning

Biology and Space. Here we go! Launching in 3…2…1…

There is a wide array of disciplines and research areas within biological sciences, and, naturally, there are plenty of career paths that concern themselves with everything earthly. However, there is also yet another path, one that can lead you closer to space and to what may be waiting beyond our habitable planet. Like myself, you may be wondering how one gets from a biology-related course to working in astrobiology or for European Space Agency. Therefore, I will share what I have gleaned from attending January’s Employability Event, From UWE to Space, where Dr Nicol Caplin, Deep Space Exploration Scientist at ESA, shared her own experience in her science journey.

Biology and Space?

A few years ago, I learned about astrobiology for the first time. Any scientist that was described as an astrobiologist appeared to me as some sort of mistic who somehow managed to obtain the title and knowledge that seemed to be imparted within. At the time, I heard little about the discipline, yet I found it intriguing, and I have checked if there is any university offering an undergraduate course in it, yet to no avail. Nowadays, there are still very few dedicated astrobiology courses. However, there are several fascinating PhD programs across the globe. I sometimes happen to mention that I would like to work as an astrobiologist to my friends or family, and what I sometimes hear back spans from ‘Oh, you would like to meet and talk with aliens?’ to my father enquiring about ‘the alien base on the dark side of the moon’ of which he has been informed of its existence by scientists on one of those pseudoscientific documentary series one can find on TV. I then go on to explain what it is that I would most likely do, and a whole new interesting conversation takes place.

Photo by Donald Giannatti form unsplash.

Branching out in science

Astrobiology is a multidisciplinary scientific field and whether you study biological sciences, astronomy, chemistry, or geology, you may be able to find your own niche in this area of work. Nicol studied Environmental Sciences, taking particular interest in plants and radioactivity, and little she knew, she would end up working for European Space Agency (ESA). Unknowingly at the time, certain steps she undertook, enabled her to pursue that path.

Whether you have already set your eyes on the sky and what is beyond, or you’re still searching for what you want from your life and career, I think that Nicol could not stress enough the benefit of making the best of the time you have to complete your degree. Internships were one of the recommendations she made as an option during summertime, as they provided her with invaluable experience. Being interested in plant-related science, she completed an internship with Soil Association, an organic farming charity, in her first year and then with Plant Impact, an agrochemical company in the second year. Another option you might like to consider for your summer is The Summer Scheme, an opportunity to participate in an 8 week summer internship. Not only it will give you a chance to build your skill and confidence, but it is also a paid internship.

Nicol also mentioned another aspect of her career, namely science communication. When studying her PhD, she has decided to pick the Science Communication module, which is great in relation to astrobiology – astrobiology is often a controversial topic, quite complex in its nature and the ability to deliver it to the general public is especially important. Nicol mentioned exciting projects she partook in, among others, Q&A video for school children- Space Rocks, which involved science communication efforts in association with ESA, employing artists and figures from media; and Star Trek convention, where she delivered a presentation about ESA and astrobiology.

Your journey

When it comes to getting your first experience working with European Space Agency (ESA), there are internship opportunities you can read about on ESA’s website, such as ESA Young Graduate Trainees or National Traineeships. However, bear in mind that due to their competitive nature, you may have higher chances to get your spot having completed or nearing completion of a Master’s degree. I do like to think that it is not a rule that is set in stone, and that if there is a brilliant enough mind, they will be able to land their place at such an internship even earlier. Nonetheless, it is certainly an option to consider later as an undergraduate student or aspiring professional.

I have reached out to Nicol after the talk, and she got back to me with a few more tips, putting some of my worries to rest. When starting a degree, especially through a Foundation Year, the prospect of completing it seems dauntingly distant. Nicol reassured me by saying that she herself began her studies with Foundation Year, and similarly to myself, was first in her family to access Higher Education. Being proactive and searching for opportunities throughout the whole studying period will likely yield benefits to those who invest their time and energy.

Final Thoughts

Considering that astrobiology is so broad, getting experience in many areas will allow you to later put the transferable skills you have gained to your advantage and improve your standings in recruiters’ eyes. Even if you do something that seems unrelated to astrobiology itself, like joining carting or poetry club, or a blogging team, you may still gain skills that could be translated into future roles, such as team working, team management, writing and presentation skills, etc. There are also societies and clubs outside of university that may align with your interests and which you may wish to join, and they are all but an online search away.

If you find yourself not knowing much about astrobiology, or you know someone who is eager to know more, have a look at the following astrobiology primer from NASA: https://astrobiology.nasa.gov/education/primer/ . It outlines current pursuits within the field and is directed at a young scientist who may be interested in this fascinating aspect of science.

Thank you for reading.

Written by Piotr Sordyl

Hello, my name is Piotr (I can assure you it is not as difficult to pronounce as it may seem) and I am a mature, international student on Foundation Year Biological Sciences course. I am originally from Poland, however, Bristol has been my home for over 7 years now (which sometimes makes me stagger when asked where I am from).

I take great pleasure in weaving tales, and so I have been writing and working on ideas for novels. I am interested in neuroscience, zoology, astrobiology, planetary science, to name a few and I intend to use the knowledge gained through my studies to write books, popularizing it to a wider audience.

I run roleplay games sessions for my friends, collaboratively telling stories that become alive in our shared imagination. I am also an aspiring violinist, learning how to take my first steps.

From the editors: Thank your taking the time to read this excellent article from Piotr, a great summary of one of the DAS Monthly Employability seminars. We hope this has piqued your curiosity and expanded your awareness of how much you can do in the sciences.

Please do share with those you think need some inspiration and reach out to us if you would like to share one of your interest on this blog platform. You can get in touch with us via email – ScienceFutures@uwe.ac.uk and also connect with us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Enjoy your Easter holiday and see you next time!

Sciences Futures 2020 : Post Event Highlights (Part 1)

Employability in Applied Sciences | 3 March 20203 March 2020

Science Futures returned in 2020 and this year’s event was by far the biggest and the best of the annual Department of Applied Sciences (DAS) employability programme at UWE Bristol. The event was focused on engaging students with opportunities for internships, placements and graduate employment and developing the next workforce generation of our society. During this event, students were given privileged opportunities to listen to experts (including DAS alumni and recent graduates) discuss their career journeys and experiences, engage with the employer exhibition and be present during various panel discussions.

The event was opened by Dr Emmanuel Adukwu, DAS Employability Leader, followed by the welcome address from the Pro-Vice Chancellor and Executive Dean of the Faculty of Health and Applied Sciences, Dr Marc Griffiths. He did an excellent job of welcoming the guests, expressing his passion for being in the sciences and discussed the importance of employability to the University and the Faculty, and why students and delegates needed to take advantage of the opportunities at Science Futures 2020; this set the tone for the rest of the day.

Dr Marc Griffiths (Pro-Vice Chancellor and Executive Dean, Faculty of Health and Applied Sciences (UWE Bristol) and Dr Emmanuel Adukwu (Department of Applied Sciences Employability Leader) setting the scene for Science Futures 2020

First Keynote Speaker – Dr Sabrina Roberts, Senior Scientific Policy Officer, Food Standards Agency (UK)

The welcome address was followed by the keynote talk by Dr Sabrina Roberts, who delivered an incredible talk on ‘Managing GM Regulations in the UK: From a Bioscience Degree to Informing Global policy’ which included highlights of her career journey, dealing with disabilities, impostor syndrome and changing courses mid-way through her degree. The feedback from the students about her talk was great and they found her to be inspirational, and great to talk to where she shared her wealth of experience and nuggets of wisdom.

Dr Sabrina Roberts at Science Futures 2020

Some key points from her talk included:

Finding a career that fits your passion: this is achieved by consistent self-development, a hard work ethic and commitment to your dreams, doing all that is required to reach them (from the careful selection of a dissertation topic and supervisor, to the development of your CV). But along this journey, as Dr Roberts pointed out, it is important to “have something else” – a hobby, fun activity etc., not only for personal fulfilment and happiness, but also as a way of standing out from the rest of the crowd, showing off your uniqueness to your potential future employers.
Join a professional society: this can be a key component in accelerating your personal and career development in a number of ways.
Networking and making new connections: it is important to identify people you can learn from and have as potential contacts for the future; this also brings the idea of creating and sharing your business cards ( yes, this is a thing!). Conferences often encompass insightful talks, presentations (providing you with a wider perspective of your chosen field), networking sessions where you would have opportunities to find a mentor (to help you get to where you want to be) – and the list goes on!

Finally, to close this talk, Dr Roberts emphasised on the importance of presenting yourself well at all times, in speech and deed!

Her final comments were “Climb to where you are happiest, but do not forget to reach down and help others up to where you are” and more importantly… “love what you do!”

Second Keynote Speaker – Solomia Boretska, CEO and Co-Founder of Tempo Market. Also, UWE and DAS graduate (2016)

Solomia Boretska *at Science Futures 2020*

The second keynote speaker was a recent UWE graduate Solomia Boretska who graduated from Biomedical Science in 2016 and is now the CEO and Co-Founder of Tempo Market. As a speaker, she was engaging, dynamic and had everyone glued to their seats. She spoke about her journey navigating through life in and out of science, struggling to find jobs and using that as her driver for learning how to code. Her company focuses on providing a rental, repair service for camping equipment, and as she describes on her LinkedIn page “Tempo is building the industrial shift to products as a service through product rentals”.

Solomia offered advice to students to:

Chase people down and show them your passion: this bold act of chasing people down highlights the need for you to be audacious! This will help you stand out from the competition.
Let your actions match the passion you are expressing: so, if you are showing interest in working for someone, be engaged in research and news around that area of interest i.e. go the extra mile; this will help you to be recognised as a candidate who is serious about what they want.
For scientists and students struggling with the fear of rejection, Solomia suggests that you“think of a ‘no’ as a hypothesis – one that is to be tested rather than accepted as the absolute truth”. Hence, even if you receive a ‘no’, don’t give up there, work on what you need to do so that next time you yield a ‘yes’.
Be open to new opportunities: sometimes, the door that you want does not open. However, that is not to say that there isn’t potentially a better opportunity that you may have not considered before, therefore, be open-minded to working in an unfamiliar field of work.

The students found Solomia Boretska to be a great example to learn from, her confidence, presentation and delivery. According to many students who heard her speak, she was inspirational.

Exhibition

Dr Emmanuel Adukwu, Solomia *Boretska* and Dr Amara Anyogu (Co-founder, Aspiring Professionals Hub & Academic) at *Science Futures 2020*

This year’s Science Futures was a great opportunity for students and staff to engage the visiting exhibitors and to network with people from basic sciences to careers beyond the sciences. This was the biggest exhibition of the futures fair with near 50 exhibitors with top UK organisations including the Department of Education (Get Into Teaching), Environment Agency, Institute of Biomedical Science (IBMS), NHS Blood & Transplant (NHSBT), Clinical Professionals, Society of Cosmetic Scientists, National Careers Service and the Intellectual Property Office.

The exhibitors also included programme leaders from different disciplines across UWE Bristol. The programmes included; MSc Biomedical Science, MSc Environmental Health, MSc Forensic Science, MSc Science Communication, MSc Physician Associate Studies, MSc Public Health, MSc Rehabilitation, and Secondary Science PGCE.

If you want to learn more about these programmes, you can click on any of the links provided. If you didn’t get a chance to network or attend – it’s not too late! Check out the ‘Careers Fair Plus app‘ to find out more about the employers and their details.

Upcoming article: Part 2!

Our next article will distill the discussions from the panel sessions at the Science futures 2020 which would be important for those seeking advice on which career routes to pursue… stay tuned!

If you enjoyed reading this article, please share it with others. Also, if you have an article or topic you would like to share with us, do contact us at ScienceFutures@uwe.ac.uk

Written by Dr Emmanuel Adukwu and Jessica Griffith

All images were taken by Kane Smith (Undergraduate student, Faculty of Environment and Technology, UWE Bristol)