News

Suzie Hughes reports:

On the 8^th of March I attended the 4^th annual ‘Celebrating Women in Chemistry Conference and Careers Event’, hosted by the Women in Chemistry Group at the University of Nottingham. The day consisted of a number of talks from successful women both in academia and industry. They each described their starting points and the journeys they took to get to their current positions. Professor Katharine Reid (University of Nottingham) told of how in the early stages of her career she often lacked confidence, being the only woman in her research labs and struggling with comparing herself to others. She went on to become the first female lecturer in the Chemistry department at Nottingham and is now a member of the Faculty of Science Executive Board.

I think many in the audience could relate to this feeling of ‘not being good enough’, and it was inspiring to hear from women who had overcome these confidence barriers and progressed into leading roles. A wide variety of potential careers were covered in talks throughout the day, ranging from those in academia to start-up businesses and intellectual property, providing an insight into the breadth of opportunities out there for chemists. The recurring message that surfaced in most talks was ‘you’re better than you think you are’ – which is always encouraging to hear!

Find out more about the event at https://pc-womeninchemistry.wixsite.com/wicuon/