I attended the ASMR Career development day on 6th September 2011. My overall impression is that it was informative and had a positive vibe. I felt it was geared more for PhD students rather than early career researchers (ECRs). ECRs like me certainly reaped some benefits from the presentations but my mind kept saying “if only I knew that before”. Here are my brief notes.
The workshop was opened by Prof Geraldine O’Neill. She gave six tips:
1. Choose something you love. You’ll be working day in day out and committing long hours and effort. You can’t survive if you don’t love it.
2. Important, interesting, simple. The research topic must be important and interesting. You must be able to articulate your research in a simple way such that lay people can understand it.
3. Stake-out your niche. Cross-discipline research, obtain something new and don’t base your project on other people’s data.
4. Plan for success.
– Write project plan
– Identify publication/IP/translation
– Create modules/techniques
5. Read the literature (but not too much)
– Know the past
– Contextualise your research
6. Attend international conferences
– Regularly (but not frequently)
– Hear from experts
– Identify the passionately held dogmas (even though you don’t agree with them)
– Recognise the current “must include” analysis
The next speaker, A/Prof Renae Ryan, is probably one of the most successful fast-track researchers. She became A/Prof in her early thirties. She received the career development fellowship even though she only had several papers. But she was the first author in papers accepted in high impact journals including Nature. The common perception is that you need 20+ papers to be successful in career development fellowships. She talked about balancing life and science. Her message was that personal and family life was very important. She showed an article “Scientists want more children”. Apparently not being able to have children or family was one of the biggest dissatisfaction. The take home message was “Be resourceful, resilient, efficient”.
Prof Peter Gunning talked about funding opportunities. I found his presentation very insightful and positive. In previous workshops on fundings and grants, the presenters tend to give negative vibe: you just do what you need to and be prepared for rejection. Well that was actually the reality. But Prof Gunning at least gave concrete suggestions of what we should do as PhD students, as postdocs and research fellows.
Firstly seeking for funding opportunities shows independence, competitiveness and initiative (self-starter). This requires
- Determination: prepare for rejection so apply again
- Visibility: People fund people and projects. Make contacts with senior people at conferences.
- Track record (predictor of success). Publications show the research quality, ability to complete projects, range of skills, output consistency and ability in leadership role.
- Mentor
In publication, the first author usually refers to the person doing the hard work and the first draft. The last author usually is the one that carries responsibility of the project and provides funding. The middle authors are less significant.
If you are the first author of 5 high impact journals in 5 years, you are pretty good.
Citations become more important later (not for postdocs).
For funding, start small: seek travel awards, prizes.
For first grants, apply to university internal grants and charities.
For category 1 grants, start as CIB or CIC in NHMRC and ARC.
Though new investigators option in NHMRC is available, we would have a better chance as CIB/C in a collaborative project grant with various senior researchers with good track records.
Publication record must be relevant for the grant application. The applications must build in your strengths and expertise.
Prof Carol Armour talked about mentoring. Mentors must be available to listen, have knowledge of the systems, can show new techniques and skills, have your best interest at “heart”, someone you can learn from, someone you are comfortable with.
CV Building blocks:
As honour students, focus on producing papers.
As PhD students, add on community engagement, e.g. involved in ASMR.
As postdocs, add on grant writing.
Find international colleagues
Gain international reputation: invites, reviews of papers
Smallish amount for teaching and admin
Things to prepare
- What is your research area? to be known internationally
- What impact have you made?
- What are your 3 best publications? impact factor, ERA, citations
- What makes you special?
- What steps to do to get international reputation?
- What to do next year?
- What expertise do I need? Where to go for collaboration?
Maryam Khajeh, Prof Philip Hogg and Hamish Hawthorn talked about research commercialisation. The key message was to talk to the patent attorney early when a potential commercialisation is discovered and keep well-documented lab notes/record (double signed preferably). Commercialisation is exciting but may require lots of attempts. For example Prof Hogg approached over 60 VCs and companies and still no success(?).
One important note: If you go to the industry for several years and then try to go back to research in the academia, it will be really tough. The industry placement creates a hole in the track record and you pretty much have to start all over again.
However I notice that the next speakers, Dr Franziska Loehrer and A/Prof Laurent Rivory, went to the industry and then sort of returned to academia. They took up a more management role. Maybe that’s the path I should take on 
Though it would not be easy as they already had a senior role before going to the industry and continue having a management role in the industry.
From the panel of postdocs, the general consensus was to do postdoc overseas after completing PhD. Make sure you visit 2 or more labs during PhD, get feedbacks from the postdocs and students there. If you have a spouse, your spouse needs to be included in your decision on which lab/country to go to. So you may need to consider more labs just in case.