A STEM degree can take you many places besides the lab but deciding what to do after graduating can be tricky. Ana Mosciuk reflects on her own journey back and forth between the lab and 'alternative' careers, with insights on the realities of these various jobs to help you match your own skills and interests to the right path.
I have finished my MSc dissertation and completed my research internship. After the 'congratulations', the question everyone has been asking is 'which lab will you work at?'. But the truth is, I'm not sure whether I want to stay in research at all.
Going into this MSc in Clinical, Social and Cognitive Neuroscience at City, University of London, my plan was to apply for a PhD and pursue a traditional career in a research lab but the more I think about it, I no longer feel that it’s the right path for me.
I decided to take some time and explore other career options in neuroscience, and reflecting on my study and work experiences has helped me to figure out what I want to do next.
I came to the UK from Lithuania in 2013 to study a BSc in Biomedical Sciences at the University of Westminster (London) with a dream to become a research scientist. In the summer following my second year, I landed my first research placement.
I worked on the kinetic analysis of oestrogen receptor ligand interactions in breast cancer tissue, and learnt a whole range of cell biology techniques, but my first lab experience wasn’t what I expected it to be. I thought that I’d spend a lot of time conducting experiments and analysing results but in reality, many of my lab days consisted of filling out health and safety forms and doing literature reviews. I didn’t really get a chance to learn about the topic in more depth, and the tasks I was assigned were often repetitive. I did find a positive result in the end, but I was frustrated to not participate in the analysis of this data. It’s fairly typical for an early undergraduate student interning in the lab for the first time to have limited responsibilities. Your first lab experience gives you a chance to build some initial lab skills under the supervision of lecturers or postgraduate students and then, as you become a more experienced student, you can be given more responsibility and time to invest in the background of the research.
My hope was that working on my own research project during my final year of my undergraduate degree would be different because I would be in charge of choosing the research question, designing the experiment and analysing data. This was true but unfortunately, I ended up assigned to a project outside of my interests. Although I enjoyed being at the forefront of research with that buzz of discovery, it was quite discouraging to keep working on the subject I wasn’t passionate about, and my love for science started to fade away.
6 months passed, I handed in my dissertation, graduated, and told myself I was done with the lab once and for all.
The first stop on my career journey was trying out teaching because I had some tutoring experience and I enjoy explaining scientific concepts to others. I thought it could be fun working on school projects and encouraging young people to get into science.
After a year of giving private science lessons, I enjoyed thinking about science from a new angle and finding new ways to make difficult concepts engaging and accessible, but I felt that I was no longer learning anything new myself. I wanted to stay up to date with scientific discoveries and contribute to new ones - my passion for science was starting to come back!
In my free time I continued reading scientific papers that interested me. I started to search for new opportunities and came across science writing vacancies.
I landed a job with a media agency and began writing health articles for a self-care app. I also started freelance writing for medical professionals and lifestyle companies. I enjoyed writing on various health topics, knowing that my articles could help people improve their lives and learn how to be healthier.
Then, in January 2020, the pandemic hit and soon we entered lockdown. Like many, I was working long and lonely hours at home and it had a serious impact on my mental health.
A few of my clients were asking me to write more articles about mental health problems and I began to learn more about how the brain works in health and disease. That’s when my love for science and discoveries was properly sparked again.
I started to think about research again. I finally knew my area of interest and had read a lot of literature for my writing job, so it was time to give my research career another go!
That’s when I decided to pursue a graduate degree in neuroscience. I applied and got accepted for an MSc in Clinical, Social and Cognitive Neuroscience at City, University of London which combined teaching with a research internship.
I started my studies in October 2021 and, dedicated to my reignited goal of being a research scientist, I reached out to one of my lecturers for a chance to work with him on a decision-making study alongside the course. I also conducted my own research for my dissertation, studying emotion recognition.
I really enjoyed designing an experiment and analysing data, but my experience of working in the lab was quite isolating. I was often frustrated by the slow progress of data collection by factors outside of my own control, like participants cancelling their appointments at the last minute.
What I did really enjoy was reading scientific literature and explaining neuroscientific concepts in simple terms to wider audiences - it felt more immediately impactful.
Realising this, when I finished my dissertation, I decided to explore options outside the lab that would bring me closer to people. Luckily, when I started my Master’s, I applied for a Student Communications Assistant job in the Marketing Department at my university to build experience in marketing and communications. I learnt how to write newsletters, student hub stories, manage social media channels and work on campaigns helping students to make the most of their time at uni. This helped me to land an internship at a mental health startup. There, I worked with the product team and gained experience in producing web content, designing landing pages and improving user experience.
Compared to the lab where I was working alone for long hours without a regular working schedule, in this role I felt more like I was part of the team. I enjoyed having group meetings, brainstorming ideas and then seeing them come to life. The job is very creative and I'm constantly thinking of new ways to design solutions to peoples' problems.
I also continued freelance writing throughout my masters. Since I’ve always maintained these writing and communication skills, I found a few clients in the health and wellness niche through networking and on freelance platforms. My days consist of creating and editing web content about mental health, healthy lifestyle and news in neuroscience research.
Now, I want to combine the aspects I most enjoyed from all these work and study experiences together - the excitement of scientific research with the creativity and human contact of communications - so I’m exploring different career roles in science writing and communications.
My current goal is to improve my skills as a science communicator. I’m doing a LinkedIn Learning course (students can often access these for free through their university) about creating a communications strategy, and I am working towards qualifications in online email marketing and social media advertising.
Attending events is also a great way to learn more about science writing and communications. Back in April, I attended an online event organised by WiNUK about alternative careers in neuroscience. It was very inspiring to hear from amazing women working in science communications, illustrations and presenting and learn about their journeys - I definitely recommend checking it out if anyone is interested in these fields.
It’s also important to build up your portfolio to showcase your work to potential clients and employers. You can create an online portfolio with Contently and upload content that you’ve written and published. I’m trying out different writing styles and have produced long-form and short-form articles for my clients, wrote research study summaries, LinkedIn posts, podcast descriptions, newsletters and performed desk research. Now I want to learn how to write engaging and informative blog posts, which is why I’ve joined the incredible Women in Neuroscience UK’s guest writers group.
To get more science comms experience, my fellow coursemate Adrianna, who also opted for an ‘alternative’ career, and I have started a blog, neurobirdies.com, where we’re documenting our neuroscience journeys while sharing studying tips and exploring various neuroscience-related careers. You can also check out our Instagram @neurobirdieswrite and TikTok @neurobirdies where we’re sharing snippets of how our study and work days look, so you can follow along!
This article was written by Ana Mosciuk and edited by Ailie McWhinnie. Interested in writing for WiNUK yourself? Contact us through the blog page and the editors will be in touch!
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