In 2012, I published Career Planning for Research Bioscientists. Based on my workshops and one-to-one career guidance interviews, the book contains career information and advice specifically for bioscience students and researchers, including practical strategies to enhance career success in an increasingly competitive job market.
The chapters of the book cover the following major areas of career planning:
THE JOB MARKET
Where are the jobs and how do you engage effectively with the job market? With so much competition, how do you stay positive in your job search? Which careers should you consider? This chapter analyses a range of jobs and looks at how you can discover the ‘hidden’ job market through networking.
SELF AWARENESS
How well do you know yourself beyond your research interests and technical skills? How will you decide which careers are suited to you? This chapter contains exercises to help you examine self-awareness dimensions, such as your skills, personality and values, so you can make informed decisions about your career and write effective job applications.
CAREER PROFILES
The book contains 20 career case studies from research bioscientists working in a range of professions. Each case study describes the person’s job, how they successfully moved into this profession and includes a commentary on their career strategies:
Academic careers: Professor, lecturer, research fellow
Industry careers: Agribiotech, pharma, small biotech, scientific services
Science communication careers:Medical writing, science writer, freelance journalist, features editor, schools liaison, policy
Specialist/technical careers: Clinical trials coordinator, science administration, patent examiner Non-science careers: Healthcare analyst, technology consultant, sound engineer
MAKING APPLICATIONS
There are a number of ways to apply for a job. This chapter gives advice about how to make effective applications and is supplemented with example CVs demonstrating how they have been adjusted to six different job advertisements and their corresponding specifications. An example covering letter is also presented.
SUCCESSFUL INTERVIEW TECHNIQUE
This chapter provides advice on techniques and strategies you can use before, during and after your interview to achieve a successful outcome. Sample questions give you the opportunity to consider how you would answer them effectively.
ENHANCING EMPLOYABILITY
In Chapter 5, suggestions for personal and professional development to enhance your employability are put forward, including ways to extend your experiences beyond your core research work.
FURTHER INFORMATION AND RESOURCES
The final part of the book provides of a comprehensive list of support groups, web resources and a bibliography for further information.
To find out more information or to purchase your own copy of my book go to:
Amazon listing Facebook page Interview in Nature