Ecological Research Careers Dr Jonathan A. Green BES Ecology Careers Conference 10/02/14

Working Practices - My Job ‘Lecturer in Marine Biology’

Working Practices - My Job ‘Lecturer in Marine Biology’

Working Practices - My Job ‘Lecturer in Marine Biology’ Teaching (45%) Lectures/practicals/tutorials/field trips/projects Setting and marking coursework and exams Helping with problems, References etc. Recruitment of new students/tracking of old ones Research (45%) Writing grants for new research projects Analysing data/writing papers/conferences Recruiting and supervising PhD students and research staff Community contributions e.g. reviewing, editing, organising Admin (10%) Learning & Teaching Committee Quality assurance/examinations officer/progress/accreditation

Working Practices – The Reality Good stuff Academic freedom Professional flexibility Personal flexibility Not so good stuff Stochasticity B******t Admin (e.g. REF)

Career Pathways & Opportunities A well trodden path (Masters) PhD Post-Doc (Fellowship) Permanent Job (via probation) As long as there is ecology………………..

Qualifications & Experience Seize the initiative Personal skill development Driving license Bird/bat ringer R Writing & publishing Think one step ahead

Skills for Success Time management Integration of research and teaching People management Networking Competitiveness & Confidence BUT none of this will help without ideas!

Career Development Promotion based on merit, not opportunity Lecturer Senior Lecturer Reader/Associate Professor Professor Working collegiately and cooperatively

Me First Degree (1992 – 1995) BA Hons Zoology (2i), University of Cambridge Helped start new student society Sport & outdoor activities The Volunteer Years (1995 – 1997) ‘Ibex 95’ Expedition surveying for goats in Kazakhstan Two weeks with RSPB ‘Skills-time’ (driving, touch typing, travelling, D of E) Four months (part time) with WWT PhD ( ) University of Birmingham Side project with colleague from fieldwork

Post-Doc ( ) University of Birmingham Side projects with various colleagues Started PhD supervision Research Fellow ( ) La Trobe University (Melbourne, Australia) Experience of lecturing and project supervision Grant writing Unexpected pause (2007 – 2008) Invertebrate surveys in Australian eucalypt forest Editor for CSIRO Publishing (scientific publishers) Lecturer at last (2008 – ) Using all of the skills accumulated in the previous 16 years Still learning new ones!

My Places

My Places - Then

My Places - Now

The take-home message You will have to work very hard along the way to succeed in this career But….DO NOT believe all the negatives that you might hear Working with you lot is incredibly rewarding Only an academic career gives you total freedom to follow your ecology ideals

Thank you