Department of Chemistry course timetable
February 2018
| Fri 9 |
Stuart Cantrill (Chief Editor, Nature Chemistry) will discuss the publishing process and what goes on in the editorial office, as well as providing some guidance on how to write a paper, how to write an abstract and some DOs and DON'Ts when it comes to titles and graphical abstracts. There will also be broader consideration of peer review in general, the wider chemistry publishing landscape and also other aspects such as metrics (impact factor, altmetrics, etc) and the use of social media. |
| Mon 12 |
This session will look at various pathways leading from academic research background into secondary school teaching and what the job is like in different environments. There will be short presentations and plenty of time for questions. |
| Thu 15 |
FS13 LaTex
Finished
This hands-on course teaches the basics of Latex including syntax, lists, maths equations, basic chemical equations, tables, graphical figures and internal and external referencing. We also learn how to link documents to help manage large projects. The course manual is presented in the style of a thesis and since you also receive the source code you also receive a template for a thesis. |
| Fri 16 |
Get essential tips for getting your research published with the ACS Editors. You’ll learn how to prepare a strong manuscript, choose the best journal for your research, and prepare a cover letter that will get the attention of the Editors. |
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In this session, we take a critical look at the peer review process and what the editors are looking for when they send a manuscript out for review. You’ll also get tips for crafting a first-rate review and see how you can become an ACS reviewer. |
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Have you ever taken the time to consider your social media footprint? In this session, we look at popular platforms Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn and show how you can manage your personal brand and promote your research to the scientific community in a way that’s effective and ethical. |
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See how SciFinder can help you narrow the job search during this presentation. You’ll see the research discovery application as never before – an effective tool for finding industries and companies aligned with your research and professional interests |
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| Mon 19 |
CP9 Consultancy
Finished
This session will illustrate how it is possible to develop careers that are very different from the traditional routes followed by science and technology graduates and why it is important that some science and technology graduates pursue these careers. |
| Wed 21 |
CP10 Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Finished
Simon Turner and Tim Guilliams have a wealth of experience in many different areas of entrepreneurship and innovation. If you feel that this might be the direction for you to head in, hearing them speak and being able to discuss with them the options available in this area will be extremely useful. |
| Fri 23 |
IS7 ORCID Session
Finished
Many funding organisations and publishers now require you to get an ORCID: a free ID that is unique to you and which comes with you wherever you go, especially when moving between academic institutions. It eliminates ambiguity about your name in publications so you can get full credit for your work. Would you like to know more? Do you already have an ORCID but are not sure how best to use it? This practical, 30 minute session is being offered as part of the Department of Chemistry careers programme 2018. Bring your own device and register for an ORCID, link it to your Symplectic account, and find out how to use ORCID to streamline your research. One-to-one support will be available after the initial 30 minutes of presentation and registration activities, should you need it. |
| Mon 26 |
CP7 Careers in Publishing
Finished
Many chemists will have already been involved with scientific publishers through submitting journal articles, using databases or reading textbooks. In this session, Helen will give an introduction to the diverse careers in scientific publishing that are available to chemistry graduates and discuss what life is like on the other side of the computer screen. |
| Wed 28 |
How do Government and Parliament make decisions? What can you do to make sure that the decisions that are made are sensible, and take account of the evidence available? In this session, Julian will discuss the mechanisms that are available to input into policy making, whether you want to do this as a full time career or just provide occasional advice. |
March 2018
| Mon 5 |
Explore the many and varied career options in industry for chemical professionals. You'll not only learn about bench chemists, but also chemists who work in management, patent law, regulatory affairs, technology transfer, technical communications, and information science. You'll discover the best way to find jobs in industry and manage the recruitment process. Finally, this lecture will offer some valuable tips for making your first year on the job in industry a great one. |
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CP17 Marketing your Brand
Finished
You'll discover the best way to find jobs in industry and receive some valuable tips for writing a winning resume / CV / cover letter and acing a job interview. Bring your CV along to this interactive session where Drs. Chorghade and Scott will give general pointers about CV writing and marketing yourself. It will be possible to ask questions as a group as a prelude to the individual sessions which will follow later in the day. |
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Drs. Chorghade and Scott will make themselves available for individual discussions regarding your CVs and aim to help you produce a good CV or even tailor what you have towards the job you are interested in applying for. Please book to register your interest, individual appointments will be made when we have an idea of how many people will require them. |
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| Tue 6 |
If you have an interest in becoming a process chemist, this session will be of interest to you. Antibody Drug Conjugates (ADCs) represent an exciting new class of therapeutics, combining a tumour targeting antibody with a cell-killing cytotoxic drug (Payload). Payloads are typically highly complex natural products prepared using lengthy and challenging synthetic routes. This talk provides background on ADCs and the types of payloads used in these molecule, then focusses on the Process Chemistry work completed on the development and scale-up of AstraZeneca’s Tubulysin payloads. |
| Fri 9 |
CP12 Oil & Chemical Spill Response
Finished
ITOPF is a not-for-profit marine ship pollution response advisory service providing impartial advice worldwide on effective response to spills of oil & chemicals. Annabelle is sent across the world to advise people on how to clean any oil or chemical spill occurring at sea. She also advises on pollution damage caused by spills (environmental and economic) and assesses the technical merits of claims for compensation. She will explain the wide variety of backgrounds of people working in this industry and their role in an incident. |
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The first half of this session will cover an overview of Raytracing versus 3D Modelling, an introduction to the free Raytracing programme Povray, running Povray (command line options). Making and manipulating simple shapes, camera tricks (depth of field, angle of view) and using other software to generate Povray input (e.g. Jmol) The second half of the session is an introduction to 3D modelling and animation using the open source programme Blender. This will cover the installation and customisation of the Blender interface for use with chemical models, how to import chemical structures from Jmol and the protein data base (PDB), the basics of 3D modelling, and an introduction to Key-frame animation. No previous experience with either 3D modelling or animation is required. |
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| Mon 12 |
CP8 Patent Law
Finished
In this session, Freija and Eleanor will give an introduction to patents and the patent application process. They will discuss the role patents have in protecting chemical inventions and hindering the exploitation of certain products, and they will introduce some of the concepts that are of particular importance to those working with patents, including novelty and inventiveness. Eleanor and Freija will also discuss the career options that are available to chemists wishing to work in patent law. |
| Tue 13 |
The relationship between a PhD student and their supervisor can be one of the most important relationships in a scientist’s career. This session will discuss what makes a successful relationship and how to manage any difficulties that might arise. |
| Wed 14 |
This session will provide information on the Language Centre’s Pressland Bursary for Scientists. This fund offers you the chance to take a short intensive language course abroad for up to 4 weeks over the summer vacation. After discussing the bursary, the session will offer pointers on the various factors involved in choosing a course. With the plethora of language schools advertised online, it aims to help you towards finding the one that suits you best. Emma Furuta is the Language Adviser from the University Language Centre. She advises on language learning strategies, and also more broadly on opportunities to learn languages within Cambridge and beyond. Administered by the Language Centre, the AJ Pressland Fund offers bursaries of up to £1,000 to support language study abroad for students within the Schools of Biological Science, Clinical Medicine, Physical Science and Technology. |
| Thu 15 |
This 1 hour lecture will take a tour through the pitfalls of plotting and point the path towards better figures! We will cover the common mistakes and general principles of plotting various types of data including time-series, statistical and geospatial. We will conclude with pointers towards making better graphics and review graphic producing software. |
| Fri 16 |
Much of scientific knowledge and information is communicated in written form, be it via journal publications, theses or in other media. However, scientific writing differs from other styles of writing quite significantly, with regard to structure, grammar and word choice. This lecture will outline the basics of what to consider when 'writing science', in order to smoothen the path to your first peer-reviewed publication, as well as your later thesis. |
| Mon 19 |
This compulsory course will equip you with the skills required to manage the research information you will need to gather throughout your graduate course, as well as the publications you will produce yourself. It will also help you enhance your online research profile and measure the impact of research. |
| Wed 21 |
FS3 Integrity and Ethics in Research
Finished
A thorough awareness of issues relating to research ethics and research integrity are essential to producing excellent research. This session will provide an introduction to the ethical responsibilities of researchers at the University, publication ethics and research integrity. It will be interactive, using case studies to better understand key ethical issues and challenges in all areas. There are three sessions running, you need attend only one. |