• Question: Have you always dreamed of being a scientist? What is the key to success when it comes to scientist?

    Asked by amina to Betul, Bridget, Ceri-Wyn, Laurel, Maria on 14 Jun 2010 in Categories: . This question was also asked by sbdw.
    • Photo: Maria Pawlowska

      Maria Pawlowska answered on 13 Jun 2010:

      I wanted to be a scientist since the age of 6 – that’s when my parents took me to that Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C. and I saw the dinosaur skeletons there. I decided they’re absolutely awesome and it’d be great if I could study them. Although it’s not dinosaurs anymore but I still study the evolution of life on Earth. I think the key thing one needs to have to succeed in science is passion. Without that it’s hard to take the inevitable failures, hard work and crazy hours. It’s also really important to keep an an open mind and not get too entrenched in your or somebody else’s, ideas.

    • Photo: Betul Arslan

      Betul Arslan answered on 14 Jun 2010:

      No, I haven’t actually. Though I was always a curious person and I was always thirsty for knowledge. I mean it, I wanted to learn everything! Second year in college I worked in a medical institute to test whether science is right for me or not. It was my first experience in science and I realized how figuring out the unknowns excite me, therefore here I am!

      What is the key to success when it comes to scientist? I think passion and curiosity is all you need. These two will bring along everything else you need 🙂

    • Photo: Bridget Waller

      Bridget Waller answered on 14 Jun 2010:

      Not at all! I went through lots of ideas…medical doctor, journalist, vet… I stumbled upon this career path mainly through being in the right place at the right time. I consider myself very lucky! 🙂

    • Photo: Ceri-Wyn Thomas

      Ceri-Wyn Thomas answered on 14 Jun 2010:

      When I was younger I thought I was going to grow up and be the next Kylie Minogue but then as I got older I realised I couldn’t sing and I’d never look that good in hot pants so I reassessed my options. It used to be my dream to work for NASA. I wanted to study planetary science but I always wondered how I could justify (to myself) learning about other worlds when there was so much I didn’t know about my own. Then, through a mixture of my own curiosity, things I was learning in school and the release of Jurassic Park- I realised that I wanted to be a geologist/palaeontologist. I was fourteen when that happened and I never looked back. I took physics, chemistry and geography for A-levels (I wish I’d taken biology but there we go) and I pursued my goal of studying geology at university.

      I think the keys to becoming a successful scientist are: Finding the topics that REALLY excite and interest you; Having bags of enthusiasm for your chosen field because doing what you enjoy is paramount; having a good amount of self belief; determination and finally the ability to read scientific literature without falling asleep and that, ladies and gentlemen, is what coffee’s for! (Being a genius/boffin/geek is not required for success in science.)

    • Photo: Laurel Fogarty

      Laurel Fogarty answered on 14 Jun 2010:

      When I was in school I wanted to be a doctor. When I left school I studied journalism and I eventually found my way into science. I think that drifting around and trying out different things was a great thing for me to do at the time- by the time I came to study science I knew it was what I wanted to do.

      I think the key to success is to never stop being curious, never stop reading and learning. I also think one of the most important skills you learn doing this work is to enjoy the work for its own sake- because you are discovering things. There is no end to scientific research like there is an end to exams- you never get a grade, you just have to enjoy it!

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