Seven invited speakers, all having pursued a PhD degree, talked about their (sometimes long and winding) career paths and informed the PhD students about different career possibilities. In smaller groups, the students had the opportunity to bombard the panelists with all types of career-related questions. In the following panel discussion, the speakers gave some useful advice on how to prepare for the life after dissertation.
Johan Ankarklev, who recently established his own research group at MBW pointed out how a professional coach helped him to reach his career goals. Freelance science journalist, Natalie von der Lehr and founder of “Visualize your science,” Andreas Dahlin emphasized how they combined their scientific experience with their talents in writing and illustrating when they created their own careers. Malin Eklund, EU Policy Officer at Vetenskapsrådet, highlighted the concepts of mindfulness and lifelong learning. Niklas Henriksson, Scientific Coordinator and Communicator at MBW gave two examples of how he used his professional and social network to get his dream job. Robert Csikasz, Lab and Project Manager at MBW gave insights into the construction of the new experimental core facility. Christer Ericsson, Chief Scientific Officer at iCellate suggested to identify needs outside of academia and using your skills to fulfill them.
“We appreciated the diverse background of the invited guests and it was great to have smaller, intimate interactions with the speakers during the “speed dating” sessions. A common theme that derived from our discussions was that there is no "right" way to “My Bright Way”. It is comforting to hear this from people who hold careers in which we one day see ourselves.” says Alexis Dziedziech, PhD student at MBW and one of the organizers of the event.
The event attracted around 30 PhD students and ended with social activities, including Bumper Ball, dinner, a pub and science-inspired cocktail mixing.
