Takeaways from The Research Roundtable

On the 11th of August I attended the roundtable discussion led by Dr. Eleanor Sansom discussing pathways into academic research, finding individual drive for research and how postgraduate studies led to their careers. We heard from Dr. Addelle Goodwin, Dr. Raffaella Demichelis, Prof. Morten E. Allentoft and Dr. Hannes Hermann, each of which had a unique perspective about why research was so important to them and how it led to their current careers.

Prior to this roundtable, I had considered thoughts like "it would be cool to do a PhD" or "I would like to be Dr. Brown someday", however one of the big takeaways I got from this discussion was how important personal motivation and joy for your research topic is important to your success. After some self-reflection, I'm beginning to think that I'm not ready for postgraduate studies at this point in my career.

So far I've had a great experience at Curtin University, but I'm yet to find a field in Computer Science that has activated the curiosity part of my brain, while I'm consistently given this feeling when I'm working on a software project or learning a new technology.

However, another big takeaway I got, especially from Dr. Demichelis and Dr. Hermann, is that research skills are required in every stage of your career, even if you don't realize it at the time. I will always be presented with problems to solve and have to critically analyze information provided to me in a work environment, and therefore I believe the NPSC2001 unit is truly preparing me for a successful career in the technology industry. It was also evident from their experiences that I don't have to pursue postgraduate studies right away, with dedication and passion, I can return to university later to pursue further studies.