by Lucy Edwardes, Scarlett Brown and Helen Figueira, PhD students from the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences at the Institute of Clinical Sciences
On the 23rd November the LMS PhD student committee organised a bowling social at All Star Lanes in White City. The aim of the event was to provide an opportunity for students to meet fellow students across different groups within the LMS away from the lab and in a relaxed and fun environment. With the hope to encourage better scientific collaboration between research groups and build support networks for students outside of their lab groups.
25 students came along and were mixed into 4 teams and played 2 games. There was a real range of bowling skills with some unexpected strikes! We had great food and drinks brought to our lanes while we were bowling. Most students stayed on after the bowling had finished to play some of the arcade games at All Star Lanes and enjoy the cocktails on happy hour!
This event was a great opportunity for the students to get together away from the lab and supervisors and have some fun after a long term. It also allowed people to meet some of the new PhD students, who joined in October.
We would like to thank the Graduate School’s Postgraduate Community Fund for sponsoring this event and giving the PhD students the opportunity to meet new people across different groups and have some fun! Hopefully this will become an annual social at the LMS.
By Lauren Shields, PhD Student in the Centre for Higher Education Research and Scholarship.
On Monday 10th June 2024, over 20 PhD and Early Career Researchers from across all four Imperial faculties met in a first-of-its-kind networking event. As a PhD social scientist in a STEMMB institution, it can be hard to find other researchers conducting similar research to you. We are often either isolated in departments or are lacking targeted training or collaboration sessions with others in the same institution. I wanted to host an event that would bring these researchers together, to form connections and learn from each other, as well as celebrate the hugely important offerings that social science can bring to physical science.
The 3 hour session began with a fascinating keynote speech by Dr. Stephen Webster, who is currently leading the Good Science Project and who was formerly the Director of the Science Communication Unit for 15 years. He discussed the benefits and challenges of researching at the interface of the physical and social sciences, particularly in an institution such as Imperial that is dominated by physical and applied sciences. Taking a philosophical approach to his talk, Dr. Webster walked us through the evolving debates surrounding the nature of the social sciences and showed how the natural sciences can benefit from social science approaches to research.
We then heard from Prof. Arnab Majumdar, Head of External Partnerships at the London Interdisciplinary Social Sciences Doctoral Training Partnerships, who reminded us about the training opportunities available through the LISS-DTP on the social sciences.
The final part of the session was a chance for us all to discuss different social science methodological approaches to our research. We each chose a particular research method, ranging from ethnography to arts-based methods, and shared our experiences of using such methods and their associated challenges. We learned best practice from each other and made connections with those conducting similar research.
The event ended with a new social media group set up for the attendees, and a will for further opportunities to bring this unique but highly important group of researchers together in our STEMMB focussed institution. Ideas raised included a social science careers fair, research symposiums for PhD students at Imperial, workshops in conjunction with social sciences staff.
Some comments received after the session include:
‘Thank you so much for your effort. One of the best, if not the best, events I have attended at Imperial.’
‘[I enjoyed] the talks by both speakers as well as knowing that there are many researchers who […] use social science theories or methodology. Knowing that this is a shared experience and [to] discuss it with other researchers is helpful.’
Blog by Laila Kasuri, PhD Student, Centre for Environmental Policy
As a mum doing a PhD, I get my fair share of sympathetic yet awkward remarks. After all, very few of my colleagues inhabit the world that I am in. Instead of telling them unrelatable stories of how my kid who is teething kept me up all night, I tell them about Michelle Yeow’s character, Evelyn, in Everything, Everywhere all at once. Like Evelyn, I often find myself in two different universes, each encapsulating two different identities of myself. In one, I could be learning new approaches and methods, producing posters and learning to present my research in an ‘engaging’ way, while in another universe, I am sleep-training my 1-year-old, attending reading mornings at my 4 year-old’s school and visiting the GP once a week for vaccinations, postpartum visits, measles, colds, vaccinations, and a never-ending slew of other sicknesses. Then, there are the logistical challenges of managing a house, figuring out childcare, coordinating school pick-ups and drop-offs, meal prepping and laundry for a family of four and then trying to find yourself amidst the endless slew of chores. Sometimes, these universes overlap in undesirable ways, for example when I was forced to take a 30-minute nap in an office full of PhD students because of sleep deprivation, only reminding me that I am a mom, a house manager and a PhD student everywhere, all at once.
But I list these challenges not to scare anyone – instead, I want to point out that in spite of these challenges that seem unsurmountable, pursuing a PhD as a mum is very doable, if not conducive to raising kids, because of the flexibility it affords in comparison to full-time work, not to mention rewarding. The goal of this post is to offer insights from my personal journey and to provide information on the resources available at Imperial that one can draw upon for support along the way.
If you are a parent, the first thing to know is that there is no universe, not mine nor Evelyn’s where you can manage a PhD without a good advisor. That is not an easy task, so make sure you choose the best advisor, who will support you as a parent as well. Then, it is imperative to have some degree of financial security. This could be in the form of a scholarship, a studentship, or part-time work. At Imperial, there are many such options available, and many of these are not listed on the website so the best thing to do is to email professors who interest you and ask around. Once you find an advisor who you click with, the funding will follow.
Next up, you will need a plan for childcare, whether it is in the form of a spouse, nanny, au pair, or the lucky few who have the ‘grandma’ close by. Luckily, Imperial has its own on-site nursery which has excellent trained staff, healthy meals and the fee is heavily subsidized. There is a wait-list like most good things, but it isn’t terribly long, so if you apply early enough, you will only need to wait a few months.
For housing, here you will need to seek support outside of Imperial. Through Google and word of mouth, we discovered that there are a handful of non-profit housing associations in London that specifically cater to international student families. They provide affordable yet very desirable housing to students across the various universities of London and while the demand for this housing is high and supply is low, if you search and apply early enough, you have a higher chance of getting a housing spot. We went this route and did luck out and were allocated a spot as soon as we arrived in London.
Even though your journey as a PhD parent will be unique and set you apart from your peers, it need not be socially isolating. Imperial offers a range of activities, events and clubs that you can join. In my case, I often participate at the many events that Imperial specifically organizes for its PhD student families through the Imperial International Family Network. This is a great initiative because I have not heard of other universities within the UK that do this. Through this, I have attended some wonderful plays, shows and events, from Cirque du Soleil to Kew Gardens, all with my family and also met other PhD students across the departments. Through these events, I don’t feel like I am missing out socially, not to mention I spend time with my kids AND my parent colleagues.
On the Tube heading to South Kensington
The last advice I have is on time management and organization. There will be never enough hours in the day to do everything. You will have to build a schedule around your family, because you are a mom doing a PhD, not a PhD student who is parenting. The difference between the two is that your primary responsibility will be taking care and safeguarding your children so your PhD work will be woven into your everyday life, not the other way around. This will usually mean working more from home, spending shorter office hours, saying no to many of the conferences your colleagues are going to and prioritizing the things that need getting done. As much as we would like to have it all, we cannot have it all at the same time.
This last advice is easier said than done, and I imagine it will remain a struggle for parents throughout their lives, outside of a PhD even. But for now, what has helped me the most, and this might resonate with other PhD students who don’t fit the mould – whether they are older, have caring responsibilities or any other attribute that sets them apart – is to surround yourself with peoples, supervisors, staff and colleagues, who will protect and respect your individual journey.
Enjoying an ice-cream outside Sherfield Building
I am not the first mum doing a PhD at Imperial and I won’t be the last. However, I know that our stories are not the norm – indeed we are going against the grain. But there is nothing wrong with forging that path. And for the parents who want to be prospective PhD students here at Imperial, if you want to pursue a doctoral degree, whether it is for a career transition, career progression, personal growth, or simply a passion project, find a good advisor and then take that leap! I say this because not too long ago, I was in your shoes, but I can tell you now that there isn’t anything you can’t do because you’re already doing the hardest (and unpaid) job ever.
by Leah Camarcat and Surabhi Ojha, Research Postgraduates in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering.
To foster collaboration and networking within the PhD cohort in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Imperial College, we recently organized an event at the Transport Museum for PhD students. This gathering, held on May 25, 2024, brought together bright minds from the transport research group and various other research groups in the department, providing a platform for knowledge exchange and networking.
The Transport Museum’s exhibits provided an excellent icebreaker, sparking conversations about the history and future of transport. The feedback from attendees was positive, with many expressing a desire for similar events in the future.
Blog by Angelos Manolias, Research Postgraduate in the Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction
In May 2024, I attended the Rising Scientist Day. The day included 2 sessions of poster presentations from 2nd and 3rd year PhDs, a 3-minute thesis presentation competition, talks from Imperial PhD alumni and networking events. In this blogpost I give my opinions on the events of day, highlight the benefits of attending such an event as a PhD student and give a few ideas for improvement in the next years.
Rising scientist day has many benefits for PhD students that attend it. Starting from the poster presentations, this is a great opportunity to gain experience with presenting your research in poster format but also learning what research is going on around the college by postgraduate students. Personally, by presenting my poster I gained experience in designing it in relevant software (a skill that I will need for future conferences), getting feedback on it by my colleagues and supervisors and ultimately presenting it in a wider audience whilst answering their questions. This is particularly useful for people like me who just entered their last year of PhDs and will start presenting in conferences. The 3-minute thesis presentations were very interesting as well, as I had the opportunity to learn about the research of my colleagues across departments in brief talks presented in lay terms. Since I was nominated by my department, I was also able to take part in the competition, which benefitted me by engaging in exciting discussions regarding my project that may help me for the rest of my studies. For the same reasons I enjoyed the networking events during lunch and afternoon coffee. Lastly, the career talks were very interesting to me personally as they came from two Imperial PhD alumni who stayed in academia, which matches my personal career goals. The talks motivated me and gave me some insight into a young researcher’s early career steps, which I found very engaging.
Overall, Rising Scientist Day is a very enjoyable and productive event for postgraduate students that acts as an internal “friendly” conference helping all students to gain experience in presenting their work. Coupled with talks and, potentially in the future, workshops and seminars, this event has the potential to be particularly educational and productive. I would urge all postgraduate students to attend the event at least once during their PhDs!
Blog by Rayyan Zafar, Mark Sweeney, Orla Mallon, Research Postgraduates in the Department of Brain Sciences and Institute of Clinical Sciences
Psychedelic drugs, such as psilocybin, ketamine, DMT and LSD are the subject of increasing research as potential novel treatments for addiction. Some of the most innovative work is being conducted by researchers in the UK.
My colleagues and I organised the first colloquium on psychedelics in addiction research, which took place in May 2024 at the Centre for Psychedelic Research at Imperial College London. The event provided a space for leading researchers in the field to meet, present their work and identify opportunities for future collaboration between institutions. Attendees were present from Imperial College London, University of Exeter and UCL, with senior academics from each group presenting their work.
The conference started with a talk from Dr David Erritzoe and Prof David Nutt, two of the founders of the Centre for Psychedelic Research. They discussed their experiences of conducting research in addiction over their varied careers, the current treatments available and the potential which psychedelics, such as psilocybin, demonstrate as potential novel treatments followed by a talk by Dr Rayyan Zafar on the use of neuropsychopharmacology techniques in addiction research. Their talks sparked a discussion on the scale of unmet clinical need and knowledge gaps related to mechanism of action which provided an inspiring start to the day!
Next, Prof Ravi Das presented on his groups work at UCL. They discussed their work investigating dimethyltryptamine (DMT) on mood, language processing and memory functioning and an upcoming trial for alcohol use disorder. They also discussed the use of behavioural techniques such as reward memory reconsolidation that have previously been found to reduce drinking urges and drinking days following ketamine infusion in heavy drinkers and their plans to use similar paradigms with DMT in patients with AUD.
After lunch, Prof Celia Morgan and her team from the University of Exeter presented their work on the use of ketamine to reduce relapse in alcohol use disorder. They started with results from their completed KARE trial which provided an insightful discussion on the trial design and how this provided the basis for future work. They went on discuss the upcoming MORE-KARE trial – an investigation of ketamine-assisted psychological therapy in increasing abstinence in people with severe alcohol use disorder. It was incredibly valuable to hear experience from the team in setting up a large, multicentre study. On a personal note, it was inspiring to see how a concept had come from pre-clinical research to a large phase 3 study with nationwide recruitment, which could provide a much-needed treatment option for people with alcohol use disorder.
The final session explored options for collaboration in future research and provided a forum to transfer knowledge between our groups. Several areas for collaboration were identified, including developing and validating neuroimaging measures and exploring the views of participants, clinicians, and commissioners on bringing these treatments to the NHS. These discussions and collaborations are valuable to ensure that the specialist knowledge and expertise in each group is harnessed and built on.
The event concluded with a networking event and dinner which was a great way to round up the day and network in a more informal setting.
The event was a fantastic way to meet others working on similar research with the shared goal developing new treatments and therapies for addiction. Organising the event took a different set of skills to our usual research, but it was rewarding to present our work and identify potential areas which can be made more valuable through collaboration. All parties left feeling inspired, excited for several new meaningful opportunities for collaboration and looking forward to the next meeting!
The organisers would like to thank the Graduate School for providing sponsorship for this event.
Prof David Nutt, Imperial College LondonProfessor Ravi Das, UCL
Blog by Chryso Christodoulou, Research Postgraduate, Department of Infectious Disease
Hi, I’m Chryso, a third year PhD student in Dr Clarke’s group, studying how programming of innate immunity by the microbiota influences host responses to inflammation. On the 8th of May I had the opportunity to present my work at the Rising Scientist Day organised by the Faculty of Medicine. It’s an event I’ve enjoyed participating in since my first year of studies, as it’s a great opportunity to see some of the amazing research other PhD students have been working on and exchange ideas – all within a friendly and sociable environment.
From HIV to Embryotic Stem Cells, this year was packed with a myriad of fascinating research topics. Working on a PhD, I think it’s easy to become engulfed in your topic and miss other interesting research happening in the wider scientific world, so I particularly enjoyed talking with people of different disciplines and learning about their work.
The day began with poster presentations. Students, me included, designed a poster outlining the main areas of our research, and as attendees circulated the room, we engaged them with our presentations. Browsing around the conference myself, I was impressed to see the exceptional quality of the posters on show. I found it to be a great opportunity to exchange ideas, and the conversations I had even prompted me to think about new approaches I could take for my own research.
Once the poster session finished, lunch was provided which was a great chance to socialise with peers in a more informal setting. Later on in the day, it was back to the science as other students gave three-minute presentations showcasing their work. This was undoubtedly a tough task, but everyone involved delivered fantastic presentations. It was mutually beneficial for us watching their work, as it gave insights into how others communicate their research ideas, engaged with an audience and structured content to deliver information on their work with clarity and effectiveness.
While the whole day didn’t count towards our PhD, nor were we officially graded, all posters and presentations were judged, and the day ended with the names of the winners. Since this was my last year of attending, I was particularly eager to present a more well-rounded and comprehensive overview of our work, and I was lucky enough to be one of the day’s winners for best posters. Based on the judges words, it was a hard decision so congratulations to all the attendees and the rest of the winners for their amazing work.
Overall, Rising Scientist Day was a rewarding experience, offering a blend of inspiration, networking, and skill development. To my fellow PhD students, I highly recommend attending and sharing your work.
Thank you to all the dedicated staff members who played a pivotal role in organising this event and to the Graduate School for their funding.
As a PhD student, I embarked on this journey to turn my research into something helpful for society. To address real-world problems, interdisciplinary work must be undertaken, involving extensive collaboration to translate research output into something practical and meaningful for people. I had planned to do this as part of my PhD, which meant that I had very limited time to make it happen, and I faced struggles and questions from many people who doubted whether what I was doing could be considered as PhD research in Engineering. I was almost ready to give up on my idea to pursue this topic. However, fortunately, I received abundant support from my supportive supervisors and the available resources at Imperial. It is important that you, as a student, know what is available to support you in your work, and be able to leverage this to make the most of your research and its potential benefits to society.
Here, I would like to share my story and key successes to help make your project impactful. Firstly, you have to clearly communicate your goal and firmly stand by your idea if you know that your work has the potential to be very useful for the public. In my case, as a PhD student developing a tool for people in low-resource settings, it is crucial to ensure that the innovation I created during my PhD is practical for people in developing countries. Without launching workshops and participatory programmes, it is almost impossible to gauge the feasibility of the application. Although we may not be able to successfully launch cutting-edge technology, it is still very worthwhile to learn about the limitations of current technology.
Remember to always seek help and support – this is the most important thing. Creating impact from your PhD research takes time and effort. At Imperial, many resources could help you transform your research into something impactful. There is a team helping you go through ethics preparation before submitting your work to the Ethics Approval Team. There is a Social Engagement team that organises masterclasses to help you learn about social engagement and how to conduct participatory research. The Enterprise Lab also has several programmes that could accompany you and help you cultivate the idea and turn it into something profitable via incubation and start-up competitions. Most importantly, for those who have no idea about what to do and where to start, the Graduate School has created the Research Impact Programme, which will teach you to understand what Research Impact is and why it is very important for PhD students.
The Research Impact Programme offers a wide range of courses to equip students with business skills, social engagement, and policymaking knowledge. I joined this programme because I know these courses are invaluable for PhD students who aspire to make a difference but may not know where to start. Thankfully, I participated in FUMO+ and attended courses under this programme. Now, I’m here to ensure that the programme can offer something to meet your expectations. Just like you, I’m a PhD student with ambitious dreams! I understand the challenges we face, but with the unwavering support of the Graduate School, my passion resonates, enabling me to effectively communicate my work to various stakeholders.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned after working closely with Imperial staff, it’s that they always listen to students’ voices. This isn’t just applicable to academic staff but also includes support staff. Imperial offers supportive staff who provide almost real-time assistance, which you can access by scheduling 1-1 coaching sessions.
I firmly believe that many PhD students at Imperial are pursuing high-impact research topics. By connecting and deploying with the various available resources offered by the Graduate School, you’ll be able to turn your project into something beyond what you can imagine. I have faith in my ability to make a difference, and I believe in yours too. Please access the links for further information on what the Graduate School can offer you and how to sign up for courses on the Research Impact Programme.
I have support as a Student Programme Partner from the Graduate School and received boundless support from Dr Victoria Crossley.
On January 15th, we had the pleasure of hosting the Vaccine Bioscience Seminar, part of the Winter Seminar Series. This was the first event we organised—a kick-off for the Vaccine Student Research Network. Our aim was to provide an interdisciplinary perspective on vaccine research for postgraduate students and offer a first glimpse into the breadth of science taking place at Imperial.
While the COVID-19 pandemic now seems to be behind us, this seminar helped us to reflect on these years and the crucial role of vaccine technology. Throughout the afternoon, we discussed public health and pandemic management through various lenses.
The event drew big name speakers, each of whom contributed a significant piece of a big-picture discussion. To start, Dr. Ferdinando Insalata presented the mathematical foundations of the SIREN study, a unique and powerful UK-led clinical study that helped inform policymakers about COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness. Then, Dr. Zoltán Kis shared insights into building sufficient production capacity for the next pandemics. Zoltán introduced digital tools to facilitate knowledge sharing among vaccine developers and manufacturers. His vision of distributed manufacturing to enhance vaccine supply in low- and middle-income countries was undoubtedly inspirational for many of us. Following this, we had the chance to listen to Dr. Simon Barton from the NHS, who delivered a thought-provoking talk on how we can learn from the HIV experience for future vaccine development. He emphasised the essential role of public health behaviours in limiting transmissions. In a hopeful concluding note, Prof. Robin Shattock showcased in his keynote presentation the potential of self-amplifying RNA technology to address many unmet medical needs. At the end of the sessions, Imperial students seized the opportunity to discuss the future of vaccine research with our panel of experts: upcoming vaccines in clinical pipelines, future regulatory challenges, and improved vaccine accessibility.
Overall, we are proud to have organised such an event, attracting over 100 attendees from various departments. We all felt that we learned something valuable about vaccine technologies and vaccine innovations. It was wonderful to see how the UK ecosystem, especially the diverse Imperial community, is a vibrant place for concrete and impactful vaccine research. We are now even more excited about our upcoming seminars organised for the large postgraduate student’s community from across four faculties at Imperial. We are also looking forward to inviting you to our annual conference in September. Stay tuned and check out our network’s website!
Blog by Sophie Kraunsoe, Research Postgraduate, Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction
On the 10th of July, for the second year running, the Francis Crick Institute hosted the Crick-partner Universities PhD Student Summer Symposium providing an opportunity to bring together biosciences students from across London. Students from all stages of their PhDs from first years to final years presented their science and had a chance to network with peers across multiple universities including Imperial College London, UCL and King’s College London.
We kick started the day with a series of excellent mini symposia on topics ranging from neuroscience to cancer and immunology. Talks were contributed by students from all universities and year groups giving the chance to practice communicating science and giving feedback in a supportive and encouraging environment. The breath of topics covered was very impressive and displayed the full range of exciting science that PhD students in London are researching. Discussions were continued after the talks with two poster sessions where more students were able to share their work and network with peers.
The symposium had an additional focus on wellbeing in academia supported by a panel discussion of experts chaired by Fryni Panayidou (Crick student support and wellbeing lead) and including Crick group leader, Jeannine Hess, Imperial faculty of medicine senior tutor, Jeffrey Vernon, PhD student and researcher of the impact of loneliness/mental health on postgraduate student, Luqmaan Waqar and University of Surrey lecturer, Cassie Hazell. All the invited panellists gave a short talk detailing their insights into the problems and possible solutions to tackling how to improve wellbeing in an academic context. This was followed by an engaging discussion based on questions submitted by the audience; there were so many questions that these are being followed up beyond the symposium with an email due to be sent to all attendees with comments on the questions we didn’t have time for on the day.
Following on from the panel discussion, we welcomed keynote speaker, Professor Molly Steven from Imperial College London who gave an inspiring talk on the use of bioengineering tools to address challenging problems in healthcare from diagnostics to therapeutics. Seeing how such a multidisciplinary lab conduct their research was hugely inspiring for our audience.
The day concluded with a networking social of wine, cheese and jazz music providing the ambience and atmosphere to relax and socialise after a long day of science. Prizes were awarded for the best poster and talks in each year group as well as an overall prize after attendees voted for their favourites throughout the day. Hopefully, attendees left feeling more connected to the PhD student community in London having had an opportunity to learn about each other’s research and meet each other in person!
We are very grateful to the Postgraduate Community Fund for their support in organising this event.
