Tag Archives: Biology

Joanna, Science

Law and Legal Services, Medical Sciences, Science, , , ,

Joanna, a Medical Sciences student, was passionate about the science and technology industry and wanted to investigate a career in computational biology and law. Her aims of the Career Mentor Scheme were to receive guidance on how her two passions of law and science could be combined into a future career. Through the scheme, Joanna was matched with a Chemistry alumnus who is now the Head of Unit at the European Patent Office based in Austria. Nigel has also worked for the Ministry of Defence, at the University of Surrey after completing his PHD and as a Research Scientist.

“A new perspective”

Joanna achieved all of her objectives including help with interview preparation, advice on pursuing a PhD and received academic support from her mentor.

Joanna talked about her experience:

What were the highlights of the scheme?

Help obtaining a new perspective on my future career plans.

What did you find most useful from the mentoring experience?

Insight into my chosen sector, and how many paths there are into this career.

What message would you give to a student thinking of applying for the Career Mentor Scheme?

You will not regret it.

Alice, Science

Biosciences, Science, , ,

Between May of her second year and October of her third year, Alice, a Zoology student was mentored by a Career Development Fellow at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

This mentor has completed a Biochemistry degree at Exeter and then pursued a PhD in Biological Sciences. Her main responsibilities include conducting seed biology research at Kew’s Millennium Seed Bank, publishing work in scientific journals and training and supervising undergraduate and postgraduate students.

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Alice shared the way in which the scheme was beneficial to her. She developed professional contacts and networking opportunities and gained an insight into further education and professional courses. Alice also developed an understanding of the route to a career in research and the difficulties that she can expect and gained academic support.

What did you find most useful from the mentoring experience?

I gained a unique insight into my chosen profession, with both good and bad aspects of the job itself and the application process being discussed.

Her mentor said:

“It was nice to hear about my mentee’s career plans and to see how they crystallised during the scheme.”