Articles for Science Careers full version

In 2011, I began writing for Science Careers, the online careers magazine of the U.S. journal Science.  To continue reading the following articles please click to ‘read more’.

Advice from researchers-turned-career-counselors for their younger selves – and today’s trainees

by Sharon Ann Holgate
Science Careers
October 15, 2018

Be open-minded. That’s one of the messages that career consultant Michelle Frank has for scientific job seekers.

How to present a disability during recruitment


by Sharon Ann Holgate
Science Careers
April 22, 2015

Most scientists applying for a job face uncertainties, but scientists with disabilities face the additional challenge of having to decide if and when to inform prospective employers of their status. In the United States and the United Kingdom, job candidates have no legal obligation to reveal or discuss a disability. Sometimes, though, raising the topic early in the process can be a good idea.  

The benefits of awards – even if you don’t win

by Sharon Ann Holgate
Science Careers
May 31, 2017

Awards have played an important role in Haley Gomez’s career. When the professor of astrophysics and head of public engagement for the School of Physics and Astronomy at Cardiff University in the United Kingdom interviewed for a €1.8 million European Research Council grant in 2014, “the first thing I was asked about” was a Welsh public engagement award that she had received earlier that year.  

Disability as a difference of perspective

by Sharon Ann Holgate
Science Careers
March 17, 2015

Ken O’Neill earned his Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of Strathclyde in the United Kingdom in 2012. Today, he is assistant statistician in the input-output statistics branch of the Office of the Chief Economic Adviser in the Scottish government, where he helps analyze economic data and calculate the gross domestic product of Scotland. In his spare time, O’Neill, who has been profoundly deaf since birth, heads a project aimed at expanding the representation of mathematical and statistical terminology in British Sign Language (BSL).

Blog, tweet, and avoid the pitfalls

by Sharon Ann Holgate
Science Careers
December 8, 2015

From penning research papers to applying for grants, writing is an integral part of a scientist’s career. With this foundation, launching a blog or posting results on Twitter should be smooth sailing, right?

Life inspires clinical applications

by Sharon Ann Holgate
Science Careers
October 7, 2014

During the first decade or so of his academic career, David Smith focused his research on the fundamental chemistry of interactions between molecules.