Careers in Your Ears

In this special episode for International Women's Day 2023, Dr. Risha Govind, Senior Clinical Informatics Scientist at the South London and Maudsley NHS Trust, speaks about her career journey and the challenges faced by women like her from traditionally patriarchal cultures in getting a professional career started. The interview is hosted by Donald Lush, Careers Consultant for PhDs and Research Staff at King's College London.

In this special episode for National Careers Week 2023, Dr. Emily Prpa, Science Manager at Yakult UK and Ireland and Donald Lush, a careers consultant working with PhDs and research staff at King's College London, interview each other about their careers and working together.  They tell the story of their careers and then reflect on the process of career consulting from both their perspectives as client and consultant. Emily explains what brought her to book career consulting appointments and why she they weren't what she was expecting. Donald shares what he is thinking while he is working with someone and what he is trying to achieve. This is a great chance to hear two career stories with unexpected twists and turns as well as gain insight into how a careers consultant might be able to help you.

Join Mackenzie Jorgensen, PhD student in machine learning models (and our takeover host for this episode) as she interviews Dr Luis Pizarro, Global Responsible AI Leader at EY and Visiting Senior Lecturer at King's College London. The first half of this episode covers a great discussion about Luis' career in academia, the importance of collaborations and keeping your career options open between academia and industry and the second half delves into the challenges we face in using AI, including responsible AI and how it could be used to counter disinformation and fake news.

Please leave us a review wherever you listen to your podcasts; it really helps us to share the podcast and to know whether the content works for you.  Thank you. Follow us on Twitter @kcldo1thing to learn more about our careers support for researchers at King's College London.

If you would like a transcript of this episode, please email careers@kcl.ac.uk with Careers in Your Ears S.8 E.2 in the title.

Join Aline da Silva Cerqueira, PhD student (and our episode takeover host!) researching sea birds and marine soundscapes in the Dept of Geography at King’s College London, and Dr Maud Borie, Lecturer in Environment, Science and Society in the same department, as they discuss an academic career and the politics of environmental knowledge.  Maud talks about her teaching, about wanting her students to be critical of received wisdom, the power that universities have over what is or is not researched, and who gets to conduct that research.

To hear more about Dr Maud Borie’s work you can follow her on Twitter @maud_bo, and if you are interested in seabirds and how soundscapes can support biodiversity conservation, you can also give Aline a follow on Twitter @aline_marine.

Let us know what you think about these podcast takeovers - get in touch with us if you're a KCL researcher and you'd like to interview an interesting guest for us!

Dr Melissa Willis is the Robotics and Artificial Intelligence Research Team Lead at Sellafield Ltd. Prior to this she was a PhD researcher in material sciences at the University of Manchester. Melissa shares her experience of guilt, low self-esteem and anxiety during her PhD. She shares advice about what helped and talks about how she handled her career change from academia to industry. Importantly Melissa discusses how she’s worked through these issues during her career transition and in her current workplace. She hopes that other PhDs in a similar situation will make use of the support available to them and her top tips: talk to someone and take real breaks.

King's PhD students can access support for their mental health and wellbeing.  Visit the new PGR Wellbeing Hub (internal) for easy access to all the support available including KCL counselling services: https://tinyurl.com/y25w75er

King's Research Staff can access support through visiting the Pathways to Wellbeing pages (internal) https://internal.kcl.ac.uk/staff/experience/wellbeing/index 

If you're a PhD student or member of Research Staff from another institution, please do contact the student and staff support sites at your university for local support.

More information about the NHS' Talking Therapies can be found here: https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/talking-therapies-medicine-treatments/talking-therapies-and-counselling/nhs-talking-therapies/ 

If you require a transcript of this episode please email careers@kcl.ac.uk citing CinYE Series 7, Episode 6.

Please do rate us wherever you listen!

Professor Evelyn Welch, Senior Vice-President for Service, People & Planning at King’s and Professor of Renaissance Studies talks about her own career journey from when a PhD was expected to last 10 years (hers didn't!), balancing temporary jobs with childcare and no maternity leave to today, in her new role as Senior Vice-President and a Wellcome Senior Investigator. She is keen to use her experience and role to support researchers to thrive in their careers through job design, career planning, secondments, collaboration, community and more. 

In this episode of Careers in Your Ears, we talk with Tim Newton, Professor of Psychology as Applied to Dentistry and Dean for Research Culture at King's College London. We hear about Tim's journey in academia and why he ventured into Ethics and now Research Culture.  Tim shares 4 key pillars for the work of research culture; ethics, governance, integrity and community.  We talk about the role of community in supporting researchers' mental health, what needs to change and what's working well. 

For a transcript of this episode please email careers@kcl.ac.uk  

Roger Carles-Fontana is a PhD student at King's College London and Mental Wellbeing and Events Lead at King's Doctoral Students Association (KDSA). He talks with us on this episode of Careers in Your Ears about why PGR students might struggle with their mental wellbeing and what they can do to address it.  Roger invites you to follow @KDSA_KCL on Instagram and/or Twitter to find out more information about events and resources.  They will also provide updates here about the new Mental Wellbeing Hub. You can also email them on kdsa@kclsu.org 

King's Counselling & Mental Health Support: https://www.kcl.ac.uk/counselling

King's Counseling & Mental Health Support (internal pages): https://self-service.kcl.ac.uk/article/KA-01164/en-us 

If you would like a transcript of this episode please email careers@kcl.ac.uk with the title 'Careers in Your Ears' transcript.

Dr Jason Myers is a Data Scientist with Faculty AI.  Prior to this, he completed his PhD with the 'Cross-Disciplinary Approaches to Non-Equilibrium Systems' (CANES) Centre for Doctoral Training at King's College London. Jason joins us on Careers In Your Ears to talk about his (not always easy) experience finding work after the doctorate. He also shares insights into his current role and answers a question a current PhD student shared with us about the difference between coding in academia and in industry.  Jason gives us insights into tackling issues around diversity in tech.

If you have questions you'd like to ask our speakers on Careers in Your Ears, please tweet us @kcldo1thing or email careers@kcl.ac.uk. We'd love to hear from you.

King's PhDs and Research Staff can book an appointment via kcl.targetconnect.net by looking for 'PhD + Research Staff' under appointment type.

If you would like a transcript of this episode please contact careers@kcl.ac.uk.

Dr. Hilary Jones is a former post-doctoral researcher who has worked in careers and employability, started her own business, is in training to be a psychotherapist and is now working for a non-profit organisation. In this episode she tells us her career story so far and gives us her insight into her varied career path.

King's PhDs and Research Staff can book an appointment via kcl.targetconnect.net by looking for 'PhD + Research Staff' under appointment type. Check out our Career Change course: https://keats.kcl.ac.uk/mod/page/view.php?id=4821037

If you would like a transcript of this episode please contact careers@kcl.ac.uk.

Bethan Cornell is a final year PhD student at King’s College London’s Physics Department and she’s also a Policy Officer in the Higher Education Unit in the UK’s Department for Education. We discuss taking on other opportunities during the PhD, the value of connecting with people who share your interests, and we ask Bethan how a Physics PhD prepares you for non-science policy work?

Starting her PhD full time, Bethan became interested in the gender disparities in people studying and researching Physics and became energised by the issues belying these inequalities. She also became interested in broader issues in higher education and happened to come across Higher Education Policy Institute. Listen in to find out what happens next.

If you would like a transcript of this episode please contact careers@kcl.ac.uk.

King's PhDs and Research Staff can book an appointment via kcl.targetconnect.net by looking for 'PhD + Research Staff' under appointment type.

We explore why Mohamed decided to do his PhD (which is around differences in neurodevelopment in children with different diseases).  Listen to this episode, to find out more about finding (or even creating) the right PhD for you, applying to a PhD, how it's different from a Masters, and how helpful Google can be.  He also talks about his side project of tutoring and his thoughts about his future.  'As long as you find enjoyment in what you're doing, that's your motivation.' If you're a King's student thinking of applying for a PhD, use the careers team to work through these questions for yourself.

If you would like a transcript of this episode please contact careers@kcl.ac.uk.

King's PhDs and Research Staff can book an appointment via kcl.targetconnect.net by looking for 'PhD + Research Staff' under appointment type.  

If you're a UG or Masters student considering applying for a PhD, please see our KEATS resources on this topic https://keats.kcl.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=41567§ion=17.  You can also book an appointment via kcl.targetconnect.net by looking for 'Careers Guidance' under appointment type.

Dr. Fawzi Abou-Chihane is a former science researcher who now runs his own careers consulting business. He has a background in sustainable technologies and sensor development. In this episode he talks about his decision to pursue opportunities outside academic life and his new career.

If you would like a transcript of this episode, please contact us at careers@kcl.ac.uk. 

Vicki is a part-time PhD student with extensive work experience in international banking and science policy, doing a PhD in Policy and Bioethics, incorporating publications. Join us as we explore career transition and the benefits and importance of establishing a flexible career, tips for managing a part-time PhD and a fascinating insight into the world of science policy.

Dr Bahijja Raimi-Abraham is a pharmacist, Lecturer in Pharmaceutics at King’s College London, Founder and Academic Lead of King’s College London Fight the Fakes. She also leads her own research group “The Raimi-Abraham Group”. Dr Raimi-Abraham's research to date has been in pharmaceutical materials and innovative manufacture. More recently she has focused her research efforts within the therapeutic and drug development aspects of malaria. In this episode we discuss power in academic life (and how to manage it), changing careers and leadership in research.

In this episode we are joined by Jennifer Jackson, Assistant Professor at the University of Calgary and a Kings alumna. Join us for a positive and uplifting conversation covering Jennifer's experience of resilience (and what it's not!), leadership, career progression, confidence and changing the system from within.

Kings PGRs and research staff can access careers support from KEATS. Search for 'Careers & Employability' and look for the 'Researchers' menu option.

Find us on Twitter @kcldo1thing

Look out for teaching and related opportunities such as Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) roles and supporting students with their study skills through the King’s Academy ‘Academic Skills for Learning’ programme.

In this edition of Careers in Your Ears, Kate Murray talks with Alexandria Mitchell, PhD student in the Comprehensive Cancer Centre at King's College London, about her reasons for deciding to do a PhD, the application process, how she funded herself, and how being a PhD satisfies her desire for research autonomy.  Alexandria also considers some of the differences in studying in the UK, from the US, and talks about what's needed for a more diverse research environment.

Shelly-Ann Gajadhar is a PhD student at the Business School at King's College London. She owns her own career coaching business and is a former criminal prosecutor.  In this episode, she talks about career change and managing multiple tasks and priorities, with a particular emphasis on looking after her own wellbeing. We also discuss the Black Lives Matter movement and what it might mean for achieving equality in academia and beyond.

Emma Davenport teaches Critical and Contextual Studies for the Design department at The Sir John Cass School of Art, Architecture and Design, part of London Metropolitan University. She researches what people wear at work with a particular interest in academic dress. In this episode we explore how academics dress at work, crossing academic disciplines and establishing a career in a highly competitive labour market.

Nick Lynn, Senior Director at Willis Towers Watson talks with Vicki Tipton about his journey from Geography lecturer to Employee Engagement Consultant. Listen in to hear Nick's thoughts on the future of work and the increasing need and relevance of research skills in the world of business. Learn what it means to work as a consultant in employee engagement. 

We’re always interested to hear from our listeners: get in touch if you have any ideas of who you’d like us to interview or specific questions you’d like us to ask people.  Tweet @kcldo1thing or email careers@kcl.ac.uk.

What does it mean to work in health policy?  What does a policy researcher do day to day?  And, if your research has been in one topic, how do you transition into another area?  Listen to this short podcast where Kate Murray talks with Dr Deborah Fenney from The King’s Fund and find out more about being a research ‘geek’. 

We’re always interested to hear from our listeners: get in touch if you have any ideas of who you’d like us to interview or specific questions you’d like us to ask people.  Tweet @kcldo1thing or email careers@kcl.ac.uk.

Stephanie Arnold, until very recently a King's PhD student, and now Senior Scientist at Astra Zeneca, talks to Careers Consultant, Vicki Tipton about how she worked out what she wanted to do after the doctorate.  She goes on to talk about the value of taking part in different activities - from committee roles to mentoring - which helped her to take her next steps.  

In this episode Donald Lush talks to Julia Yates and Tristram Hooley, two academics who research career thinking and planning. We discuss the latest research and the practical advice emerging from it as well as considering how the world of work is likely to change over the coming decades. Finally, we talk about whether careers advice and career planning should have an ethical dimension and, if so, how.

In this episode Kate Murray, Careers Consultant, talks with Dr Alessandro di Bona, an EU Exit Policy Adviser. You'll hear about Alessandro's time as a PhD student and whether it connects to his current role. He has some top tips too, for those aspiring to change careers. 

 This edition of Careers in Your Ears, the podcast for researchers at King’s College London, is hosted by Kate Murray, Careers Consultant for Researchers and Deputy Head of King’s Careers & Employability.   Kate was on site at Roche, the pharmaceutical company, at their Welwyn Garden City site, and talked with Dr Max Bourgognon, a former post-doc at King’s and now Insights Manager; and his colleagues Dr Jessica O’Neill, Franchise Insights Lead, Neuroscience; Dr Claire Gibson, Franchise Insights Lead, Rare Diseases; and Dr Chiara Marchetti, Insights Manager.  The four talked about their decision-making in moving away from academia and give valuable tips and advice on navigating the post-PhD and post-doc period.  

Miranda Asher is PhD student and a part time consultant. In this episode she talks about balancing her workload, the attractions and challenges of self-employment and the issues you should pay attention to when you work for yourself.

In this episode, we talk with Dr Nicola Leveringhaus, a lecturer in the War Studies department at King's College London.  We discuss her career journey in academia, how to get into good time management habits and how to profile your research interests when applying for jobs. Enjoy!

Dr Asma Ounnas 

In this episode, Dr. Dan Metcalf tells us about his PhD research and how it led to a career installing high resolution microscopes at the imaging company Nikon. He also talks about the qualities, skills and experience required to work in his team. 

Welcome to Careers in Your Ears! This is a podcast for PhDs and Research Staff at King's College London. In this episode we explain how the Careers team can support researchers. In future episodes, you will hear researchers' stories of how their careers have developed and gain their top tips for success!