Five tips for optimising your taste of academic or industrial workplaces
As an undergraduate, deciding whether to pursue a PhD, get a job in industry, or leave chemistry completely can be a difficult decision. Teaching labs, while good for building basic practical skills, have little in common with academic or industrial chemistry, meaning often students must make important career decisions without fully understanding the nature of the options. Summer placements are therefore a valuable opportunity to experience real workplaces without committing to the career path prematurely.
‘A summer project is the ideal time for you to figure out whether you want to stay in chemistry,’ says Abigayle Boyce, a former placement student at Heriot-Watt University, UK. ‘I found that I absolutely loved the environment of research and by the end of my placement, I knew that I wanted to do a PhD.’
As an undergraduate, deciding whether to pursue a PhD, get a job in industry, or leave chemistry completely can be a difficult decision. Summer placements are therefore a valuable opportunity to experience real workplaces without committing to the career path prematurely. ‘A summer project is the ideal time for you to figure out whether you want to stay in chemistry,’ says Abigayle Boyce, a former placement student at Heriot-Watt University, UK. ‘I found that I absolutely loved the environment of research and by the end of my placement, I knew that I wanted to do a PhD.’
Here are some suggestions for how to find and make the most of your own summer placement.
Be proactive
Summer placements are often not advertised explicitly but that doesn’t mean these positions aren’t available. ‘It’s always nice to have a knock on the door and an email – I don’t think an academic has ever minded an email saying “I’m really interested in your chemistry and do you have any opportunities?”,’ says Stephen Mansell, a catalysis researcher at Heriot-Watt University, UK. Most university departments have a system to organise placements and apply for funding so it’s worth approaching your teaching staff to find out more about the process. Many companies also offer summer projects and Mansell recommends contacting your careers service for advice on finding and securing placements with local industry.
Ask questions
Placements expose students to lots of new techniques so taking every opportunity to learn about these unfamiliar methods is a great way to build skills (and confidence) quickly. But, Boyce says, learning about the process of research is just as valuable as developing practical aptitude. ‘Ask the PhDs, postdocs and academics in your group for tips on how to be an effective researcher – what they do, what software that they use, how they organise their experiments,’ she says. ‘That knowledge can really streamline the process for you when you go into research and even if you don’t, it will stand you in good stead no matter what you go on to do.’
Take notes
With all the focus on the practical side, it can be easy to forget how your project links back to taught theory, but making these connections is particularly helpful to put your undergraduate knowledge in context. ‘Summer placements allow you to see how understanding and specific skills from lecture courses, lab practicals and other learning directly apply to work day-to-day, especially in an industrial environment,’ explains Gareth Hart, a research scientist and former summer student at Johnson Matthey. ‘I suggest writing notes on what you’ve learned and how that relates to any work you’ve done in a course previously.’ Contextualising theoretical knowledge with practical examples and applications can crystallise your understanding of key principles, which may be helpful in future years of your course. ‘Keeping a record of your skills also helps to provide evidence on a CV!’ adds Hart.
Let your interests guide your decision
Know what you want
Both academia and industry have resources and equipment well beyond the average teaching lab, so summer placements are a great opportunity to learn about unfamiliar techniques. ‘Think specifically about what it is you would like to work on and the types of skills that you would like to gain,’ says Hart. Whether it’s generating a crystal structure after a course of lectures covering the theory, or taking a reaction from bench to process scale, expressing your preferences from the beginning can help shape the final project. If you’re unsure what to ask for, Hart suggests simply following what you’re most interested in. ‘In academia, there might be a particular topic that you’d really like to understand more about, or on the industrial side, you might be really interested in how a particular technique or reaction is applied – let your interests guide your decision.’
Enter into the culture
Beyond the practical experience, summer placements also introduce students to the reality of working culture in academia and industry – something which often takes them by surprise. Unlike undergraduate study, research is a hugely social and collaborative endeavour – group meetings, social outings and casual discussions in the office are all a big part of the experience and Mansell recommends getting involved in this aspect as much as possible. ‘All these interactions give students the confidence to talk about chemistry and it’s a nice opportunity to meet other people doing different projects,’ he says. ‘They can also get a feel of what the complaints are – physical chemists will always be complaining that their machine isn’t working, organic chemists will be complaining about their columns. Sometimes it can be as good to rule something out as to rule something in!’
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