• Question: What is it like being a scientist and how does it effect your daily routine

    Asked by anon-277267 on 20 Jan 2021. This question was also asked by anon-278025.
    • Photo: Sophie Gill

      Sophie Gill answered on 20 Jan 2021:

      Being a scientist who does research is hard work and can be tiring – I have to set my own schedule which is amazing in many ways but can be difficult in others – if I’m feeling motivated, setting my own schedule is the best thing ever! If I’m not motivated, it can be difficult to drag myself to my desk out of bed, particularly during lockdown! The best days are when I get to do field work or lab work, as those are busy but exciting and you can’t be as flexible with your schedule. Bottom line is, being a research scientist leads to not ever having a “typical day” which is really exciting and flexible 🙂

    • Photo: Liam Taylor

      Liam Taylor answered on 20 Jan 2021:

      I agree with Sophie! There is no “normal day” (though in lockdown every day certainly feels the same!). It’s very cool being a scientist – mostly because you get to meet so many inspiring people do amazing work.

    • Photo: Becky Greaves

      Becky Greaves answered on 20 Jan 2021:

      Hi James, I think that being a scientist is really good fun as I love finding things out. However, it can be frustrating as not everything works on the first (or even fourth) attempt so you need to be prepared for things to fail. If that happens you have a little think & then try again & again until you learn enough to be able to achieve what you want. You have to be persistent.
      My daily routine has changed quite a lot with Covid as we’re not in the lab everyday but it does mean that I can do lots of on-line training, reading & planning so that when we’re back in the lab full time we’re ready to get experimenting! Thanks for your question

    • Photo: Graham Shields

      Graham Shields answered on 20 Jan 2021:

      A lot of the time being a scientist is just like other jobs in that there are still deadlines to meet and some mundane tasks to complete. However, the rest of the time your brain is free to explore new ideas and new ways of doing things – being creative and finding out new stuff are just part of the job which is great. Although that is liberating, it does make it harder to switch off because your hobby is also part of your job. Weighing up the pros and cons, I wouldn’t do any other job and I feel very lucky to have had this opportunity.

    • Photo: Michael Nolan

      Michael Nolan answered on 20 Jan 2021:

      It’s a job that moves from great highs and moments of triumph to lows of having proposals or papers rejected (and some people can be rather nasty in writing rejections). It’s never stagnant, always moving forwards. What is the best bit is helping other scientists grow and reach maturity in their scientific thinking and knowing they will go on to do good things.
      There’s no daily routine – it all depends on what is happening day to day. As well as that, I have three kids in school, so my routine is also driven by looking after them.
      But the sense of independence and freedom you get as a professional scientist is something you do not get in many other jobs.

    • Photo: Sian Evans

      Sian Evans answered on 21 Jan 2021:

      Hi! My favourite thing about being a scientist is that you get to ask questions that nobody knows the answer to, and then try to figure it out for yourself (and with the help of colleagues)! As others have said it’s a very varied job because how you try to find those answers is up to you – sometimes at a computer, sometimes in a lab, sometimes going away to collect new data. So it is very flexible but you still have to meet deadlines and do some boring things like in any job. If you are a curious person who likes asking questions and problem solving you would be a great scientist.

    • Photo: Steve Wroe

      Steve Wroe answered on 21 Jan 2021:

      When I was working in Antarctica there was no daily routine. For example, during the Antarctic summer we would often working during the night (we had 24 hour sunlight) because travel was easier

    • Photo: Will Ingram

      Will Ingram answered on 21 Jan 2021:

      Technically it takes up my day monday – friday from 8 – 4:30, but occupies my mind for longer than that!

      I think really being a scientist is all about wanting to understand the world around you and tbh this never stops! One thing I do to relax is play music (sax or guitar) and the older I get, the more and more I get fascinated by the science behind the music – for example the overtone series and how that makes harmony work!

      I think the more time I spend doing science for my living, the deeper my fascination for the world and how it works becomes 🙂 At the end of the day, I have just learnt to love learning – no matter what the subject

Comments