Chemistry Careers- What's Next?

The School recently hosted “Chemistry Careers – What’s Next?”, showcasing the diversity of careers options open outside academia to people with a chemistry research background. The event was organised by the members of the School’s PhD and Post-doc Forums and Business Partnership Unit, and was attended by 100 PhD and post-doctoral research staff.

“Chemistry Careers-What’s Next?” consisted of both talks by professionals working in science-related careers and a networking session giving opportunity for the delegates to find out more about the different careers available. Speakers covered a variety of sectors, including industry, patent law, publishing, consultancy, teaching, business and marketing.  In particular, a number of former Nottingham PhD students came back to describe their current jobs including patent attorney Freya Hine (Adamson Jones), environmental consultant Adrian Chapman (Oakdene Hollins), Martin Whitaker (Fusion IP/Diurnal Ltd) and David Ring (AkzoNobel). 

Plenty of advice was also available about the current job market and how best to look and apply for jobs. Simeon Ractliffe, a recruitment consultant and founder of Access-ScienceJobs, described how to use agencies to your advantage while Clare Jones outlined the support available through the University’s Careers and Employability Service. Joanne Thomson, Campaigns Manager at the RSC, discussed the different roles available within the RSC graduate scheme such as publishing and marketing, and Alasdair Taylor from the Business Partnership Unit talked about working in technology transfer. There were also presentations by TeachFirst and STEMNET highlighting the need for talented scientists to get into the classroom and inspire the next generation.

The day was a huge success and it is intended that “Chemistry Career’s: What’s Next?” will become a regular event in the School’s calendar.