• Question: what advice would you give to people who want to become scientists

    Asked by anon-220358 to Rachel, Patrick, Lorena, Emmanuelle on 12 Jun 2019.
    • Photo: Rachel Hardy

      Rachel Hardy answered on 12 Jun 2019:

      Always work as hard as possible at school, to achieve the best that you can. I would also try to seek work experience wherever possible, so you can see if this is a career that you would enjoy. It also looks really good when applying to Universities if you have been proactive in seeking work experience. For example, while I was doing my A-levels I shadowed biomedical scientists in a hospital lab for a few days (I wrote to a few hospitals and asked if I could do this). This helped me to see if this was a career I would enjoy, and gave me a wider perspective of what scientists do in a lab. See if there are any science magazines offered by your school, or any that you can subscribe to. This will give you a wider perspective of what kind of research is going on right now. Most of all, try to have fun with your work and have a positive attitude. I think that with hard work and passion, everyone is capable of achieving the career that they want to 🙂

    • Photo: Lorena Boquete Vilarino

      Lorena Boquete Vilarino answered on 21 Jun 2019:

      I think my main piece of advice would be to always be curious and ask questions. Ask your teachers and your family about science, about degrees… Never be afraid of asking a question even if you feel like it may be a silly question (there’s not such thing!). Scientists are always asking themselves and others questions, and then trying to answer them.
      I would definitely recommend trying to get a placement or work experience in a lab somewhere, and see if you would like to work doing something similar to what is done in the lab. You can also ask your school to bring a scientist in to give a talk or to do a demonstration – lots of research institutes do public engagement activities at schools! Once you meet a scientist, ask them lots of questions about their job, especially their day to day.
      It’s also important that you work hard at school, choose the right subjects (ask your teachers about this!), and then keep working hard on your degree. And don’t give up if you don’t like a particular field of science. Scientists work is many many different subjects, you just need to find the one for you 😉

Comments

  • Photo: Aina

    Aina commented on :

    Be passionate. Science require a lot of sacrifice and hard work during all your life and this will only work if you really really like what you are doing!

    Also, Be positive. Science can be disappointing sometimes so learn how to take those moments as constructive lessons. That is part of the deal.

    Be imaginative. Science is a lot about “thinking outside the box”. If you do what everyone has already done you are not bringing anything new to the field. So let your mind go wild! The once considered as ridiculous ideas are now some of our best inventions!