Tag: academia

“I have the right and the opportunity to be a generalist” – Career path of Matti Nikkola

I meet Matti Nikkola in his office at Biomedicum, where he works as Head of Education at the department of Cell and Molecular Biology at Karolinska Institutet. Matti’s office is full of things that he enjoys, and things he’s proud of. A robot dog, beautiful glass statues, and a vast collection of newspaper articles. I comment that it’s tidy despite all the objects. “With my job, you have to stay organized”, he explains.… Read More “I have the right and the opportunity to be a generalist” – Career path of Matti Nikkola

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Networking – getting to know a friend you haven’t met yet

As I am approaching the last year of my PhD, I decided to sign up to an online conference entitled “The Academic Job Market” organized by “Beyond the Professoriate” organization. I don’t know what I want to do after the completion of my PhD but it’s always better to be informed. As the conference was online I could also watch the videos on my iPad during one of my many flights scheduled for the fall.… Read More Networking – getting to know a friend you haven’t met yet

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Mentoring matters – how to lead your research group

As early career researchers, we are all trying to figure out our paths. Knowing this, Reinhart Reitmeier, professor at the University of Toronto, recommends everyone from PhD student to senior investigator to have a mentor that is around 10 years ahead of you in their career. For graduate students, he sometimes recommends to get a mentor outside of academia.… Read More Mentoring matters – how to lead your research group

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What is a postdoc? Finding answers amidst ambiguity – Part 1

It’s 8pm on Friday evening. You’re halfway through the experiment you had to restart because you forgot to add a crucial control sample in the first assay. You forgot to add the control in the first place because you’re extremely stressed. You’re stressed because you need to finalise a grant submission that you already worry isn’t good enough, aren’t receiving enough support with and aren’t sure if it will actually be enough to apply for an assistant professorship. You hear the last of your colleagues’ laughter as they disappear off to the bar and you’re left alone in the lab. A weekend at the bench and your computer looms ahead.… Read More What is a postdoc? Finding answers amidst ambiguity – Part 1

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