Budding scientists develop their skills

As part of the World class Masterclass series, Dr David Fox, Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry, came to talk to the Applied Science students this May about his career in Science.  David has had an extensive Chemistry career working firstly in academia and then the industry. He was previously a director at Pfizer for many years, and is now a Visiting Professor at Leeds and Reading, but also works extensively with Imperial College London and the Universities of Bristol, Birmingham and Sheffield.

Students learnt about David’s portfolio, the skills he’s developed throughout his professional life and how this has helped him diversify his career.  David emphasised the need to adapt skills to meet challenges that they may face in their coming jobs.

Students were also introduced to the complicated process of drug discovery and the trials facing pharmaceutical companies today. In an interactive session students applied their background knowledge to practical aspects of molecule design.  The students had great things to say about David’s visit, with Jayme Randall saying it was “an amazing experience that provided insightful aspects into scientific jobs.” Leo Elliott also said the day was lots of fun, it was interesting to see how much David had learnt and travelled, and how David was so passionate about passing on his knowledge. Max Squires concluded “it was an interactive and very informative talk”.