Post-PhD Career Trajectory & Funding

Ian Humphreys

Wellcome Trust Senior Research Fellow

Institute of Infection and Immunity

humphreysir@cf.ac.uk

The Academic Pyramid

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The Non-Academic Science Careers- Not a Plan B!!!!!!

Interesting Alternate

Career Paths

Interesting Alternate

Career Paths

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Postdoc

PhD Student

The Non-Academic Career Alternatives

TeachingAccountancy

LawPatent Law

Technology TransferInvestment Banking

Medicine (More Education!!)Professional Opera Singer (?!)

Pharmaceutical IndustryBiotech

Clinical SciencePublishing (e.g. Scientific Journals)

Grants ManagementScientific PolicyForensic ScienceMedical Writing

Clinical Trial ManagementScience-Related Sales/Support

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Postdoc

PhD Student

Tips For Considering Alternate Career Paths

1. Be PRO-ACTIVE in finding out about alternate careers

2. When CV writing, consider all the translational skills that you have gained in your PhD

3. Tailor your CV for the job that you’re applying for

4. Take LinkedIn seriously, it might land you a job

The Academic Pyramid

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Step 1

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Postdoc

PhD Student

Step 1: Get Most Out of PhD to Secure Fantastic PostDoc Position

- Build up skill set, master techniques

- Read within and outside your subject area

- Join a scientific society

- Apply to competitions, travel awards (e.g. University or Society)

- Give talks internally and externally at conferences

- Attend talks, “meet with speaker sessions”, talk to people

- Aim to publish work in respected journals from your PhD: ideally first-author and before the end of your PhD

Step 1: Get Most Out of PhD to Secure Fantastic Alternate Job

- Skill sets

- Reading/Attending talks – broaden knowledge

- Scientific society/Talk to People/conferences – build networks

- Competitions/Awards/Publishing – demonstrate excellence

- Give talks – presentations skills

- Publishing – writing skills

Step 2:Postdoc

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Step 2: The Postdoc(s)

Step 2: The Postdoc(s)

- Expand skill set, master techniques

- Read within and outside your subject area

- Apply to competitions, travel awards (e.g. University or Society)

- Give talks internally and externally at conferences

- Attend talks, “meet with speaker sessions”, talk to people

- Publish first author papers in high-impact journals

- Start establishing independence (own ideas, supervision, teaching, grant/paper reviewing)- Try and obtain independent funding

Step 2

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Step 2: The Postdoc(s)

The Fellowship Career Track

Advantages

- Prestigious

- Everyone wants you

- Flexibility

- Enables you to focus on research

- Opportunities to travel

- Allow switch to tenured position later

- £££££

Disadvantages

- Very competitive

- Selective criteria

- Stressful applications (interviews!)

- Less teaching opportunities

- Less job security (?)

Step 2: The Postdoc(s)

- Expand skill set, master techniques

- Read within and outside your subject area

- Apply to competitions, travel awards (e.g. University or Society)

- Give talks internally and externally at conferences

- Attend talks, “meet with speaker sessions”, talk to people

- Publish first author papers in high-impact journals

- Start establishing independence (own ideas, supervision, teaching grant/paper reviewing)

- Try and obtain independent funding

Postdoc Funding – Grants

- Internal seedcorn awards (e.g. ISSF, MITReG)- Charity Grants- Welsh Assembly

- Royal Society- Travel Awards

Travel/Mobility

Postdoc Funding – Fellowships

- ISSF- Welsh Assembly- MRC Centenary- Charities

- Henry Wellcome (WT)- Human Frontiers SP- EMBO Fellowship- Marie Curie- CRUK

Yrs post-PhD0-10-30-2

Post-PhD0-2

Recipe for Successful Fellowship Applications

- Excellent application (excellent science, written well, guidelines followed)- Excellent applicant - high impact first-author papers – quality over quantity - independent funding- Potential to build own independent career- Are not publishing exclusively with your previous boss(es)

~99% Successful Prestigious/Senior Fellowship Recipients

Have Moved Institutes

Working Abroad

- Increases your options of labs to work in (choose carefully, visit)

- Brilliant way to fulfill fellowship criteria – great for CV

- Expand international networks

- More opportunities (different skills, more conferences)

- Experience a “different way of doing science”

- Fantastic life experience………………..

Funding for establishing your own group

Fellowships (usually parallel schemes for tenured staff)

humphreysir@cf.ac.uk

- Wellcome Trust - Royal Society (URF, Dorothy Hodgkin)- MRC (CDA)- BBSRC (David Phillips)- RCUK (University Award)- ERC (CDA)- CRUK (CDA)- Specialist charities- Local funding: ISSF, Welsh Assembly