As well as being an opportunity to learn new chemistry, RSC events are great for networking and have allowed me to meet fellow scientists and learn about career opportunities within ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ chemistry community.
“In ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ end I thought that ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ practical aspect of a chemistry degree would be more interesting over a four-year course,” says James.
“My PhD project involved synÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØtic inorganic and organic chemistry, with a key emphasis on ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ design and characterisation of phosphorus compounds with unusual behaviour and ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØir transition metal complexes. Some of my results were published over two papers in ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ RSC journal Dalton Transactions, and were followed by a review of my PhD subject area in ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ RSC annual book series Specialist Periodic Reports – Organometallic Chemistry. ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØse were great experiences as I was able to receive useful feedback from ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ peer-reviewed publishing process ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ RSC has.”
Joining ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ RSC within ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ first few months of his undergraduate degree, James has had many opportunities to attend events and conferences in ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ UK and abroad. ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØse experiences have benefited his career and as a postgraduate helped grow his network in ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ phosphorus chemistry community.
“I have always found RSC events to be very well organised. As a PhD student, I attended ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ biannual Dalton conference at ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ University of Warwick in 2014 and ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ ChemComm/Dalton Transactions International Symposium at ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ University of Regensburg in 2013.
“As well as being an opportunity to learn new chemistry, ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØy are great for networking and have allowed me to meet fellow scientists and learn about career opportunities within ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ chemistry community. At ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ Dalton conference, I met Dr Chris Russell from ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ University of Bristol and subsequently spent a week in his research laboratory. ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ experience was excellent and formed ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ basis of my RSC researcher mobility grant application, which I used to go to Germany for six weeks.”
Without RSC funding, I don’t think I’d have had ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ same opportunities for professional development in my career so far. ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ researcher mobility grant and EnterprisePlus training voucher enabled me to increase my knowledge of chemistry and consequently made me a better scientist.
Granted in 2014, James’ researcher mobility grant allowed him to work in ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ group of Professor Evamarie Hey-Hawkins at ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ University of Leipzig. “It was a fantastic opportunity and it allowed me to develop my skills in ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ laboratory, in addition to being a very educational cultural experience. It was great to work in a different research environment and really helped with my professional development as a scientist.”
After finishing his PhD, James joined High Force Research Ltd – a company he already had links with as ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØy were providing financial support to anoÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØr student in his research group. Since ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØn, he has developed into an experienced and driven senior team member, spending most of his time in ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ laboratory exploring multistep synÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØtic organic chemistry projects.
“I generally work on contract research projects, which means I have experienced a wide range of chemistry across a multitude of sectors and academia, such as pharmaceuticals, imaging agents and polymers. As a team leader, I support less experienced colleagues in ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØir roles and have represented ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ business at regional networking events. I regularly attend our region's RSC Organic Division meeting and find it a great opportunity to see what exciting new chemistry is being done in ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ North East.
“My position is also customer focused, so I frequently interact with clients regarding project updates and ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ results of ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ work undertaken. It is a very interesting job and I have been able to learn a lot of new practical skills thanks to ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ diversity of ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ projects.”
Let’s advance chemistry, togeÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØr. Reach your full potential with RSC membership.
Recently, James was awarded an EnterprisePlus training voucher from ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ RSC, which partially funded a Scientific Update training course in Amsterdam.
“ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ experience has been very useful in my role at High Force Research. It really increased my knowledge of chemical development and scale-up, and I have been able to implement parts of ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ course into my projects. I have also been able to pass on technical information to my colleagues through in-house training and seminars.
With his belief that professional development is a highly important part of personal development and his impact in ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ chemical community, James has also taken up oÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØr knowledge-enhancing opportunities that ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ RSC have to offer. One of ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØse resulted in him achieving Chartered Chemist (CChem) status through ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ RSC’s new scheme launched in 2020.
I was really well supported throughout ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ CChem process. I’m happy that I was able to contribute to ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ updating of ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ scheme and participate in a webinar to help promote ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ relaunch. Before I joined ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ pilot scheme, I had a consultation with Dr Jonelle Harvey about what was needed to achieve CChem status. It gave me ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ confidence that it was ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ right qualification for me and gave me time to collect evidence and prepare a portfolio.
“A few months later, when I started on ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ CChem pilot scheme, I was actually assigned Jonelle as a mentor. She guided me towards appropriate evidence for each attribute and all ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ advice I received was very useful. I was pleased to see that ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ new attributes also covered sustainability and ethical practice, which I think will engage a younger audience. Achieving CChem status is not just about doing good science or your day-to-day job – it covers oÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØr aspects of your character, such as your contribution to ÀÖÌìÌÃappÏÂÔØ scientific community and wider society as well.
“I think that my CChem will help me throughout my career, especially when it comes to standing out in a competitive job market where many people are likely to have similar university qualifications. It is also proof that you are willing to put time and effort into your professional development, which I think will be looked upon favourably.”