• Question: What made you pick science as a career?

    Asked by anon-186615 to Verity, Trystan, Raquel, Danny, Catherine, Andy on 2 Nov 2018.
    • Photo: Danny Ward

      Danny Ward answered on 2 Nov 2018:

      I chose science as a career as I enjoy finding out new things. Lots of careers are good to go in to but they can often stay the same for decades. Science is always evolving. There are always new things being found out, always new things to learn.

      Whats even more exciting is that scientists are the ones finding out the new things. The research we do will be passed on to the next generation of scientists. This could be taught in school/university classes or could fuel new research.

      To add to this, much of the work scientists do has real-world benefits. By understanding the world around us better, we can solve global challenges to make peoples lives better. Research science has a large impact for medical advances, agriculture, technology and quality of life. I find that very rewarding.

    • Photo: Verity Hill

      Verity Hill answered on 2 Nov 2018:

      Honestly, I chose science because I thought it was really really cool. The idea that you can look around you and just sort of know stuff about everything you see is super appealing! I love explaining things – like why do we still have an appendix? Why do you have to get the flu vaccine every year? Why are we struggling to eradicate polio when we managed to get rid of smallpox nearly 50 years ago?

      Science (and especially biology) is also exciting because was great that something could change so quickly – my whole PhD (and my Masters research) would not have been possible to do ten years ago because the technology didn’t exist.

      It’s also really important to me that what I do makes people’s lives better, and science does this! For us here in the epidemic zone, it’s very clear what the impact is – we help to stop people from dying or losing time to illness. But it’s the same across a lot of science, maybe helping farmers to produce more food, or developing fuel that pollutes the planet less.

      So science is super interesting, fun to talk about, and makes people’s lives better! What more could you ask for?

    • Photo: Raquel Medialdea Carrera

      Raquel Medialdea Carrera answered on 3 Nov 2018:

      I have to recognise that I always liked learning about everything. I found history was very interesting, I loved doing PE and I truly enjoyed literature. However… I have always been fascinated by science. I wanted to know and understand more about the world! 🌎
      Also, I thought that by doing science, I could have a job that could help even more people ☺️ .
      I think that doing a science career can be challenging, but also truly exciting and there are so many different career paths, so many options…

    • Photo: Trystan Leng

      Trystan Leng answered on 4 Nov 2018:

      I chose science as a career because I like learning new things and because I like solving puzzles. If you have a curious mind, I can’t think of a better career to go into – there are always new questions to answer, always new things to learn, and always new problems to be solved.

      I also wanted to do something that would help people. My research focuses on understanding how diseases spread and how best to control them. So my research can help inform decisions of policy makers about things like vaccination, and ultimately my research might help stop people getting a disease. I think that’s an incredible thing to be involved in.

      Another (small) reason – as I’m a mathematical modeller, I don’t need a lab – I do most of my research from my own computer. That means I can work from home (and sleep in) quite a lot!

    • Photo: Catherine Smith

      Catherine Smith answered on 4 Nov 2018:

      I found choosing a career quite difficult. To be honest, I think that I only really realised that I wanted to do science as a career once I had tried it out for a bit.

      That said, there are a few things about working in science that seem to suit me, and might appeal to others! I like working on long-term projects (my current project lasts about three years), because this gives me the opportunity to explore topics in lots of detail. I also enjoy the process of science – trying to understand how a system works by being methodical and testing different hypotheses. It’s also quite a creative career – the best scientists that I know are good at thinking of imaginative ways to approach new problems. Finally, the working environment is generally pretty relaxed, and I am left to manage my own time. So long as you get the work done, no one minds when you do it!

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