Blog
Handy bits of advice and thoughts on careers
How do I make the leap to lectureship? A postdoc’s guide
Are you a postdoc or fellow looking to make the lectureship leap? What do you need to know to become a lecturer? Other than your subject, that is What type of lectureship? All universities are different, especially in the UK with its heady mix of ancient and...
How do I make a skills based CV? A researcher’s guide
Have you heard of a skills based CV? Can postdocs use a skills based CV? When should researchers use it in their job hunting? Let’s do traditional Traditionally, most people have a chronologically based CV. You'll have your name at the top and then have your...
The resilient postdoc: building your resilience muscles
Being a postdoc is tough. I know! But there are ways in which we can develop our resilience beyond the simple 'what doesn't kill us, makes us stronger." A cut throat job market. Short term contracts. That evil reviewer #2. Being a postdoc requires resilience not only...
How do I choose a mentor? A postdoc’s guide
Choosing a mentor comes up a lot when I'm talking to postdocs. Either they come to me and say, “Oh, I need a mentor”, but haven't really got an idea what that might involve. Or their situation is making me think “you need a mentor”. I’m going to lay everything out...
Leaving planet postdoc without guilt
Escaping planet postdoc without guilt. This is a constant theme when I work with postdocs. It's either feeling guilty about leaving full stop or leaving academia Or even leaving one bit of discipline for a slightly different discipline. There are often feelings of...
5 key elements of an academic CV
#1 Tell me what your doing now One of the things that infuriates me is not being able to find out straightaway what someone's doing from their academic CV. They might lead with their PhD but they don't tell me what they're doing now. If you are currently a postdoc,...
