Katie’s Sutton Trust Summer School in 2010 inspired her to apply for Geography at the University of Cambridge. She is now a Research Associate at the University of Manchester exploring reforestation. Read on to hear about Katie’s academic journey!

 

Tell us a bit about your background 

“I grew up a village in Somerset. Both my parents are disabled. I went to a state secondary school and then an FE college in a town 50 minutes away by bus. I am a first-generation academic. In my family, only my cousin had been to University before me, and he stayed locally. My secondary school wasn’t great but it wasn’t awful. I don’t remember University being mentioned at school as option. The few careers events we had were focussed on more ‘practical jobs’: trades jobs, teaching, nursing, army etc (or whoever the school could get to come in and talk to us). I always did well at school but don’t remember any specific encouragement really, I did well because I wanted to. I remember when I started college I wasn’t even sure I wanted to go to University (which seems unbelievable now – what else would I have done?). Almost no-one I knew had been to University and I didn’t know anyone in tertiary jobs.

When I decided to go to Bridgwater College to do the International Baccalaureate instead of staying at the local college to do A-levels, this was the first good decision I made. There, I was exposed to the possibility of going to University. I remember I went on a college-organised visit to UWE in Bristol with some of my class-mates. We were told that the volunteering we were doing as part of the IB could help in our personal statements and there were other opportunities too.”

How did you hear about the Sutton Trust and what led you to apply?

“It was at Bridgwater College that I was told about the Sutton Trust Summer Schools. I applied to go because I loved Geography and I wanted to go on a free trip to Cambridge to do some more geography. I had no intention of applying back then (I felt like it wasn’t for me). The Summer School changed all that. I remember sitting on the train on the way back thinking damn, I want to go there, this is going to be a lot of work for the next year. The fact that I went from not even considering applying to Cambridge to desperate to go is a testament to how amazing the Summer school was at making me feel like I belonged there, that I would fit in.”

What do you remember about your time on your Sutton Trust programme?

“I remember thinking how much work and time the lecturers were putting into us and that made me feel welcomed and valued. I enjoyed the fieldtrip to Grimes Graves (I think it was). I remember getting tingly feelings in the seminars as my mind was exposed to new ideas and challenged. I enjoyed the reading and the work. I loved just being in the Geography Department and I loved Cambridge. I got on with the other students in the Summer School, and that made me question all the stereotypes I had heard about Cambridge. I realised there would be loads of people like me and I would fit in. I was sold!”

Did you know what you wanted to do for a career before university? Did your Sutton Trust programme (or anyone you met through it), help shape that decision?

“No, and I still didn’t afterwards to be honest (it took a long time!). The Sutton Trust Summer School was fundamental in getting me where I am today. I am not good planner or a future thinker. I took decisions based on what was interesting and what felt right at the time. Going on the Sutton Trust Summer school was a turning point I think. It opened the door to the path I am now following.”

What is your current job role?

“I’m now a Research Associate at Manchester University. I commute to the office in Manchester two days a week and work from my old office in Bangor (where I did my PhD) the rest of the time. My job is fixed term for three years and I’m working on the Sustainable Forest Transitions Project. For better or for worse, fixed term contracts like this are part of the standard pathway to becoming an academic. They are fixed-term because you are paid to do a specific project, funded by the government, which only lasts a few years. I am working alongside the Principal Investigator, who is effectively my boss, another postdoc, and three PhD students. While I do have a boss and have to work within the remit of the project, I still have a lot flexibility to develop my own research interests and in how I work. I also get a lot of support for professional development (i.e. to help me plan my next steps).

What does a typical day look like for you in your role?

The project I’m working on is exploring the drivers and outcomes reforestation. Specifically, what factors are causing forests to grow back and what are the implications of this for both forest cover and poverty, focussing mostly on the tropics. I am a conservation scientist – I am interested in ways humanity can access the resources we need while safeguarding biodiversity and the ability of the planet to sustain us. I use spatial data and statistics to answer questions like; what was the impact of a mining rush the middle of a tropical rainforest on forest cover; does biodiversity offsetting work; and what common factors are driving forest regeneration globally.

Three main tasks take up most of my time; reading, data analysis, and writing. I spend a lot of my time reading scientific articles to keep up with research and inform my own work. My research is mostly based on statistical analysis of spatial data so I use GIS software, R and Google Earth Engine. I love playing about with maps and finding interesting patterns! Then of course, once I have done a study I need to write up, and that is very time-consuming. I also have weekly meetings with my project team and sometimes meet with other researchers I am working with on various projects. Science is very collaborative so you will often find yourself working on something with people from universities around the world.”

Tell us about your career journey so far.

“I did my undergraduate degree in Geography at the University of Cambridge 2012-2015. In the summer after I finished I did an internship at the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre in Cambridge. While this internship was unpaid I received a bursary to cover my living expenses, so at least I didn’t have to pay anything. After this I spent a year in New Zealand on a working holiday. I travelled around the country, did a lot of hiking, and worked as a receptionist in a backpackers hostel for 5 months.

When I returned in December 2016, I still didn’t really know what I wanted to go so I moved to back to Cambridge to stay with my boyfriend and got a temporary job at Anglia Ruskin University as an administrator. This turned into a permanent job in Student Administration for the Faculty of Science and Technology. I got on very well with my colleagues there (some of whom became friends) and I loved the atmosphere of working in a University. During this time my boyfriend was doing a Masters degree at UEA in Norwich and I was getting jealous. This, combined with the fact that, while I enjoyed my job at ARU, the job itself was not fulfilling prompted me to apply for a Masters myself.

In October 2018 I started an MSc in Environmental Management at Lancaster University. I really enjoyed being back in the University environment as a student, not an administrator, and put in a lot of effort to get good grades. I particularly enjoyed the GIS and statistics modules. One day in January I was emailed a list of PhD projects open to applications as part of the Envision DTP (a group of 5 Universities which club together to offer PhD studentships). I had briefly considered the idea of doing a PhD but hadn’t devoted much time to thinking about it because I wanted to concentrate on the Master’s, and I’m not particularly ambitious. So it wasn’t something that I had been looking for and striving towards for a long time.

But then I saw a project on mining in Madagascar, thought wow – that looks interesting, and applied. I only had two days to write the application because the deadline was imminent. A few days later I had the interview and a few days after that I was offered the place! The PhD was based in Bangor, North Wales so in October 2019 me and my partner moved there. It took me a while to settle in, and even longer to feel confident, but over the four years my supervisors moulded me into a scientist. There were ups and downs but I absolutely loved my PhD. I realised that, at heart, I am a massive nerd, I love playing with maps and data and exploring interesting questions, and I am quite good at it too. Although it wasn’t until my final year that I decided that I wanted to give academia a go and try and get a research job post-PhD.

When I saw my current job advertised, I applied and was successful! I was lucky that my boss hired me without a PhD (because I hadn’t finished it by this point), and agreed to delay my start date by 6 months to allow me to finish.”

What’s the best thing about your role?

“The fact that I get paid to look at maps all day! Also the flexibility. While it often doesn’t feel like it, in academia we have more time to spend delving into details, learning, and going down rabbit-holes than in a similar field in a consultancy or NGO for example. I am also allowed to work on side-projects at the same time as my main project and there is a lot of support available for professional development (e.g. training courses) to help me to get my next position. I also really enjoying mentoring PhD students; listening and offering advice to help guide them through the rollercoaster which is a PhD.”

Did you face any barriers in accessing your career – and how did you overcome these?

“I think the first steps on my career ladder provided the greatest barriers – getting to university, and Cambridge in particular. Once I was in, that was it, there was no keeping me out. These barriers were mostly due to the lack of early guidance and information about university, a lack of encouragement (at my school, my college was really good) and lack of predecessors. I remember when I started college I wasn’t even sure I wanted to go to university, which seems unbelievable now, and Cambridge didn’t even cross my mind as an option. Going to a really good FE college and attending the Sutton Trust SummerSchool changed that.”

 

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