In this episode, Dr. Sarah Burton, writer and researcher tells us about her career in education and about her experience of gaining funding from the Leverhulme Trust, what that meant to her and gives some tips on making an application. Many thanks to the Trust for introducing us and making this episode possible.

In this episode we are joined by Dr. Dmitry Kishkinev who is a lecturer in animal behaviour and behavioural neuroscience at Keele University. He tells us all about his career history, moving countries, the need to think strategically about your career and the support he has received from the Leverhulme Trust. We'd like to thank the Leverhulme Trust for their generosity in helping us record this episode.

“I wanted to see what it was like in a different environment.” For this episode, we’ve passed the mic to Lingxing Kong, a King's PhD student in his third year of research in Robotics, and an Inclusive Careers Education Ambassador (ICEA). Lingxing is joined by Dr Emmanouil Spyrakos Papastavridis, Lecturer in Engineering, who shares his fascinating career journey. Emmanouil's career has taken him from academia, into a startup lab, and back again – he shares his thoughts on the benefits and drawbacks of working in both contexts, tells us about the skills he acquired along the way and provides plenty of inspiration for those exploring career options. For more info on the ICEA programme: https://keats.kcl.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=61839&section=7for King's students and staff Public links: Phoenix Issue 164 February 2022 (agcas.org.uk)https://www.agcas.org.uk/write/MediaUploads/Phoenix/Phoenix_Issue_164_February_2022_-_Students_as_co-creators.pdf Emerging insights from a peer-to-peer social justice careers education programme | Journal of the National Institute for Career Education and Counselling (nicecjournal.co.uk)https://www.nicecjournal.co.uk/index.php/nc/article/view/464

We’re celebrating International Women’s Day with a special episode and we're joined by Drs Amal Abuzainab, Lovelin Obi and Rokhshid Ghaziani who are all academic researchers, teachers and involved in many other things alongside their main careers. In a very uplifting conversation, we hear about how they came to be academics, what kinds of barriers women can face in academic life (and how to overcome them) and the challenges of managing complex careers and responsibilities.

Join us for an inspiring chat with Professor Michael Sanders as he lets us in on his approach for getting things done in academia, the need for code-switching to develop a career in multiple sectors and how to view and use your own privilege to empower others. Michael demonstrates the power of a porous career that spans academia, Chief Scientist in the Behavioural Insights Team, Chief Executive of a What Works charity and advisory work. He provides insight into the role of a professor and shares his take on protecting your wellbeing whilst building a fulfilling, multidisciplinary career in a competitive environment.

Can researcher career paths span academia and industry? Is it possible to simultaneously work in both? Dr. Lizzy Moyce, Arup's Research Development Manager and Careers Consultant Laura Johnson explore these oft-asked questions. Lizzy gives us her tips on leveraging transferable skills; seizing opportunities and 'legitimate snooping', to enhance the chances of an intersectoral career.

In this episode we meet Chloe Locatelli, a PhD student at King's College London, who is currently close to completing her thesis on sex technology. We speak about the importance of her feminist approach to research, why her research has a 'wow' factor and how to engage a wide audience with an arts and humanities research project. We also speak about self-confidence, career thinking and the value of seeking advice and support as a PhD researcher. Along the way we consider how universities can open themselves up to more diverse perspectives and include a wider range of people in their research. You can find out more about Chloe and her research on her website

In this episode, Dr. Pavan Mano tells us about his journey from PhD to research fellow and then to his current lecturing post at King's College London. Pavan tells us about the importance of using the support on offer to researchers (including mentoring, careers advice and friendships). We also speak about equality, diversity and inclusion in higher education, what higher education institutions should be doing and why the concept can be thought about in different ways.

Kinga Bercsenyi is VP of Business Development at Arctoris and has never seen a job description. She also had no idea what she wanted to do after her PhD and says she has never attended a formal training course. And yet she has progressed rapidly in her career in Business Development and balanced that with a family. Too good to be true? Find out about creating the right environment for serendipitious career possibilities, the benefits of creating a network, career decision making and exploration and work life balance. Also includes a handy guide for understanding more about Business Development and the different types. We have crammed a lot into this episode, we hope you enjoy it too. For King's researchers you can access the career tools 'Trying Out Career Options' and 'Career Tracks' via our Researcher pages accessible from here: www.kcl.ac.uk/careers.

This mini-series of Careers in Your Ears is hosted by King's PhDs and researchers. In this episode, Tisha Dasgupta, Research Assistant and PhD student in the Department of Women’s & Children’s Health, School of Life Course and Population Sciences at KCL, interviews Sam Mukhopadhyay, Head of Programme Management Office and senior events lead at Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (ESNZ). Sam talks about her career to date in the Civil Service and shares what the civil service is looking for in recruits and importantly what attributes and skills researchers have to offer this type of work. Please note this episode was recorded in February 2023, when the UK Government had just newly formed the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero. If you would like a transcript of this episode, please email careers@kcl.ac.uk with 'Transcript, CinYE, S8,E3' in the title. KCL PhDs and Research staff can access specialist careers support: from 1-1 appointments and tailored workshops. More information is available on our KEATs page https://keats.kcl.ac.uk/mod/page/view.php?id=5279350&forceview=1

In this special episode for International Women's Day 2023, Dr. Risha Govind, Senior Clinical Informatics Scientist at the South London and Maudsley NHS Trust, speaks about her career journey and the challenges faced by women like her from traditionally patriarchal cultures in getting a professional career started. The interview is hosted by Donald Lush, Careers Consultant for PhDs and Research Staff at King's College London.

In this special episode for National Careers Week 2023, Dr. Emily Prpa, Science Manager at Yakult UK and Ireland and Donald Lush, a careers consultant working with PhDs and research staff at King's College London, interview each other about their careers and working together.  They tell the story of their careers and then reflect on the process of career consulting from both their perspectives as client and consultant. Emily explains what brought her to book career consulting appointments and why she they weren't what she was expecting. Donald shares what he is thinking while he is working with someone and what he is trying to achieve. This is a great chance to hear two career stories with unexpected twists and turns as well as gain insight into how a careers consultant might be able to help you.

Join Mackenzie Jorgensen, PhD student in machine learning models (and our takeover host for this episode) as she interviews Dr Luis Pizarro, Global Responsible AI Leader at EY and Visiting Senior Lecturer at King's College London. The first half of this episode covers a great discussion about Luis' career in academia, the importance of collaborations and keeping your career options open between academia and industry and the second half delves into the challenges we face in using AI, including responsible AI and how it could be used to counter disinformation and fake news. Please leave us a review wherever you listen to your podcasts; it really helps us to share the podcast and to know whether the content works for you.  Thank you. Follow us on Twitter @kcldo1thing to learn more about our careers support for researchers at King's College London. If you would like a transcript of this episode, please email careers@kcl.ac.uk with Careers in Your Ears S.8 E.2 in the title.

Join Aline da Silva Cerqueira, PhD student (and our episode takeover host!) researching sea birds and marine soundscapes in the Dept of Geography at King’s College London, and Dr Maud Borie, Lecturer in Environment, Science and Society in the same department, as they discuss an academic career and the politics of environmental knowledge.  Maud talks about her teaching, about wanting her students to be critical of received wisdom, the power that universities have over what is or is not researched, and who gets to conduct that research. To hear more about Dr Maud Borie’s work you can follow her on Twitter @maud_bo, and if you are interested in seabirds and how soundscapes can support biodiversity conservation, you can also give Aline a follow on Twitter @aline_marine. Let us know what you think about these podcast takeovers - get in touch with us if you're a KCL researcher and you'd like to interview an interesting guest for us!

Dr Melissa Willis is the Robotics and Artificial Intelligence Research Team Lead at Sellafield Ltd. Prior to this she was a PhD researcher in material sciences at the University of Manchester. Melissa shares her experience of guilt, low self-esteem and anxiety during her PhD. She shares advice about what helped and talks about how she handled her career change from academia to industry. Importantly Melissa discusses how she’s worked through these issues during her career transition and in her current workplace. She hopes that other PhDs in a similar situation will make use of the support available to them and her top tips: talk to someone and take real breaks. King's PhD students can access support for their mental health and wellbeing.  Visit the new PGR Wellbeing Hub (internal) for easy access to all the support available including KCL counselling services: https://tinyurl.com/y25w75er King's Research Staff can access support through visiting the Pathways to Wellbeing pages (internal) https://internal.kcl.ac.uk/staff/experience/wellbeing/index  If you're a PhD student or member of Research Staff from another institution, please do contact the student and staff support sites at your university for local support. More information about the NHS' Talking Therapies can be found here: https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/talking-therapies-medicine-treatments/talking-therapies-and-counselling/nhs-talking-therapies/  If you require a transcript of this episode please email careers@kcl.ac.uk citing CinYE Series 7, Episode 6. Please do rate us wherever you listen!

In this episode we hear from Dr. Nigel Eady, Dr. Amy Moore and Dr. Kathy Barrett. All our guests began their careers in research and now have roles at King's College London where they support the training and development of PhDs and Research staff. We hear from them about their own career journeys, what they do from day to day in their current roles and their professional challenges. They also share their reasons to be cheerful about the future of healthy workplaces for researchers and their top tips for someone thinking about working in their roles. You can find out more about support for PGR well being at King's College London here and how we support our staff here.

Professor Evelyn Welch, Senior Vice-President for Service, People & Planning at King’s and Professor of Renaissance Studies talks about her own career journey from when a PhD was expected to last 10 years (hers didn't!), balancing temporary jobs with childcare and no maternity leave to today, in her new role as Senior Vice-President and a Wellcome Senior Investigator. She is keen to use her experience and role to support researchers to thrive in their careers through job design, career planning, secondments, collaboration, community and more. 

Listen to this episode of Careers in Your Ears to understand more about a very experienced academic's route.  Kate Murray talks to Simon Wessely (https://www.kcl.ac.uk/people/professor-sir-simon-wessely), Professor of Psychiatry at King's College London, about his experiences as a clinician and epidemiologist, about the peaks and troughs of research life and the excitement of making an impact.  We also discuss the SMaRteN (https://www.smarten.org.uk/) network, a student-led research network looking at student mental health issues, and talk about the issues involved in understanding research studies looking at perceptions of mental health and stresses in occupations.  Simon describes the importance of a healthy social network, and of a good manager, in promoting good mental health. KCL PGRs can access the new PGR Wellbeing Hub here: tinyurl.com/pgrwh  Please email careers@kcl.ac.uk if you would like a transcript of this podcast.

In this episode of Careers in Your Ears, we talk with Tim Newton, Professor of Psychology as Applied to Dentistry and Dean for Research Culture at King's College London. We hear about Tim's journey in academia and why he ventured into Ethics and now Research Culture.  Tim shares 4 key pillars for the work of research culture; ethics, governance, integrity and community.  We talk about the role of community in supporting researchers' mental health, what needs to change and what's working well.  Learn more about Tim's work here: https://www.kcl.ac.uk/people/tim-newton Science R.I.O.T. Club: http://riotscience.co.uk/ Science R.I.O.T Club on Twitter: https://twitter.com/riotscienceclub Dignity at King's: https://www.kcl.ac.uk/hr/diversity/dignity-at-kings/index For more information about support from the Centre for Research Staff Development at KCL: https://www.kcl.ac.uk/research/support/professional-development/centre-for-research-staff-development KCL PGR Wellbeing Hub: tinyurl.com/pgrwh   For a transcript of this episode please email careers@kcl.ac.uk  

Roger Carles-Fontana is a PhD student at King's College London and Mental Wellbeing and Events Lead at King's Doctoral Students Association (KDSA). He talks with us on this episode of Careers in Your Ears about why PGR students might struggle with their mental wellbeing and what they can do to address it.  Roger invites you to follow @KDSA_KCL on Instagram and/or Twitter to find out more information about events and resources.  They will also provide updates here about the new Mental Wellbeing Hub. You can also email them on kdsa@kclsu.org  King's Counselling & Mental Health Support: https://www.kcl.ac.uk/counselling King's Counseling & Mental Health Support (internal pages): https://self-service.kcl.ac.uk/article/KA-01164/en-us  If you would like a transcript of this episode please email careers@kcl.ac.uk with the title 'Careers in Your Ears' transcript.