• Question: how did you become a scientist

    Asked by ukxbatmanzz to David, Rebecca, Simon, Verity, Wei on 15 Jun 2011. This question was also asked by daniel1, ukxspidermanzz.
    • Photo: David Armstrong

      David Armstrong answered on 13 Jun 2011:

      I never really made an active decision to become a scientist, but kept choosing to do more studying because that’s what I enjoyed doing and eventually I found I was a scientist.

      At school my favourite subjects were always maths, physics, chemistry and technology. When it came to choosing A levels it was easy to pick the first three and I did the Engineering Education Scheme( http://www.engineering-education.org.uk/ ) rather than technology. When I was looking for university courses, I thought about loads of options, from Chemical Engineering to Geology, as well as physics and Chemistry. But I settled on Materials Science as it combined my favourite bits of physics and chemistry with real engineering applications.

      When I was at University I did several work placements in my vacations, and nearly got a job as an engineer for an oil field services company. But I enjoyed doing my 4th year research project so much I applied to do a PhD so I could continue my research. Then when I finished my PhD, I got a fellowship to work on materials for nuclear fusion. I’m still learning loads of new science doing this and I think that’s why I became a scientist as I really enjoy learning new things everyday.

    • Photo: Wei Xun

      Wei Xun answered on 13 Jun 2011:

      When I was doing my A-levels, I had really no idea what I wanted to do. I picked a science degree which was fairly specialised but still no idea what job I wanted after graduation.

      Then I was offered a job in a scientific charity, doing research. After while I realised that this wasn’t want I wanted to do for the rest of my working life and I went to study again. I am very lucky to have found a job in the same subject straight after that.

      I think to get into sciences in universities and research institutions, you don’t have much choice but to get educational qualifications. Careers for scientists tend to be quite straight forward, A-levels, degree, Master/PhD, job. But that doesn’t mean if you have to decide now. I’ve changed careers fairly recently and am now much happier.

    • Photo: Rebecca Handley

      Rebecca Handley answered on 13 Jun 2011:

      I picked up a university catalogue and saw a course called Microbiology – I had no idea what it was, but went on the internet to learn more! It sounded very interesting so I started picking subjects that I needed – biology, geography, chemistry, maths – but I wasn’t very good at all of them. I then went to college and did an AVCE in Science, which was enough to get me into university and start the Microbiology course!

    • Photo: Verity Nye

      Verity Nye answered on 15 Jun 2011:

      I never really made a conscious decision to become a scientist but I always asked a lot of questions and wanted to know more about the world in which we live. I used to dive a lot and wonder what was down there in the depths beyond the limits of where I could go on scuba. Eventually I went back to university and studied oceaongraphy and knew that I didn’t want to do anything else. For me (and I think a lot of other people) being a scientist isn’t just about a job; it’s what you do. If you can find something you love it doesn’t feel like going to work. Life’s too short to spend most of your week doing something you don’t like doing.

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