SGNZ - Sci Grad New Zealand

SGNZ

Welcome to SGNZ! A weekly podcast hosted by Lorenzo and Kai Man where we discuss all things career wise for science grads who are unsure about where they want to go in the future.

  1. 11/18/2021

    S2E7 Victor Yim

    Dr Victor Yim completed his PhD in Chemistry in the University of Auckland. He went through the Medicinal Chemistry undergraduate pathway which lead to peptide research. After his university life, he went on to become a researcher at Snowberry NZ where he works with novel ingredients and formulation for skin-care products. Find us on all our socials: https://www.facebook.com/Scigradnz https://www.instagram.com/scigradnz/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/sgnz-science-grads-new-zealand/ Credit Logo: Denny Lee Intro: "Cali" By Jonas Bjørnstad (https://pixabay.com/music/beats-cali-1171/?fbclid=IwAR0yGsfL9GEURuj4VpzFIUKdXmmH1Pik3YxUokmsKJ1QLNQdaPJC-HKsNsg) Outro: "U Said It V13 Soundcloud" By Jonas Bjørnstad (https://pixabay.com/music/beats-u-said-it-v13-souncloud-1167/?fbclid=IwAR0tQaXzxiON3LN9hmMY14hZlVSafDuz8T3DIXfDBoKttlnEdpnTK9shyag) Time Stamps: 1:43: First question: what got you started on science? 2:03: The deeper you get into science, the less certain things are. 3:22: Victor did the Asian 5 in high school. 4:23: Cambridge tends to be more representative of university style grading. 5:55: Why did you choose Chemistry over Biology and Physics? 7:35: What's the main difference between Chemistry and Medicinal Chemistry? 9:03: Unfortunately picking Medicinal Chemistry narrows down your topic choices in postgrad as it focuses more on Organic Chemistry. 11:34: What's the PGDip layout in Medicinal Chemistry? 13:34: Victor accidentally did lab work along with this 8 papers for PGDip which made things unexpectedly difficult. 16:30: Victor talks about what he did in his postgrad projects. 19:54: It's hard to find papers that publish "failures".  20:45: Negative results are still results.  23:57: What were the good things and positives about doing your Masters and PHD? 26:47: Thesis submission. The defense and the end. 29:48: What counts as dumb luck and what counts as hard work and skill. 31:48: What did you do after your PhD? 34:07: The issues of stability in academia and research.  38:18: Victor's advice

  2. 11/11/2021

    S2E6 Shalini Ketheeswaran

    Shalini completed her Bachelor of Pharmacy from the University of Auckland in 2015 and is a registered practising locum pharmacist. She was the Auckland Pharmacy Students Association President (2015), which allowed her to fully make the most of her university experience. In 2017 she built up the courage to change course and pursue a full-time career in the Pharmaceutical industry and hasn't looked back. This has provided her with the opportunity to live and work in different cities all over NZ. In order to develop herself further, she is currently focusing on skills in Management and Marketing supported by her Master’s study at UOA. Tune in to hear Shalini speak about the perks of being a pharmacy student, the career options that the pharmacy pathway can lead to, and how to have a bit of fun along the way. Find us on all our socials: https://www.facebook.com/Scigradnz https://www.instagram.com/scigradnz/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/sgnz-science-grads-new-zealand/ Credit Logo: Denny Lee Intro: "Cali" By Jonas Bjørnstad (https://pixabay.com/music/beats-cali-1171/?fbclid=IwAR0yGsfL9GEURuj4VpzFIUKdXmmH1Pik3YxUokmsKJ1QLNQdaPJC-HKsNsg) Outro: "U Said It V13 Soundcloud" By Jonas Bjørnstad (https://pixabay.com/music/beats-u-said-it-v13-souncloud-1167/?fbclid=IwAR0tQaXzxiON3LN9hmMY14hZlVSafDuz8T3DIXfDBoKttlnEdpnTK9shyag) Time Stamps: 00:00 Introduction 1:00 How Shalini got into science 2:50 How Shalini decided on Pharmacy and placements 14:45 Shalini’s experience during the Pharmacy programme 18:00 What happens after graduation 21:25 How Shalini decided to go into the corporate world 24:19 Exploring opportunities beyond community pharmacy 26:00 Reaching the business world with Master’s degree 33:40 Advice Shalini would give to her 18-year old self

  3. 10/28/2021

    S2E4 Utsav Patel

    NEW EPISODE ALERT 🚨 Utsav is a fourth year PhD student at Duke University researching particle physics within the ATLAS experiment. He previously attained a First Class Honours in Physics alongside a Bachelor’s Degree in Science with a major in Physics and a minor in Mathematics at the University of Auckland. In his transition from New Zealand to the states - especially in the confusing process of applying to international graduate programs, Utsav has learnt a lot and looks to help anyone that is considering further studies in international universities. LINK IN BIO Timestamps 0:15 Intro 1:11 What got you into science? 2:20 The influence of high school physics for Utsav 3:35 Physics vs Engineering 4:46 Lorenzo and Utsav reminisce over inorganic chemistry while Kai Man gets PTSD from his first year physics course 6:30 Most people take physics just as part of the "Asian 5" for budding biomedical science students 7:15 Astronomy in University of Auckland 7:45 The paths/specialisations in physics 8:34 Utsav specializes in particle physics 9:53 Honours is where you really dive into your specialty 12:25 The benefits of an entire class/paper dedicated to lab work 15:56 Finishing undergraduate and Utsav's options 17:00 PhD talk and Postgrad talk 20:36 Specifics on Utsav's Honours thesis 22:50 Utsav praising engineering prowess 23:33 How he got to Duke University from Auckland 25:35 Utsav runs a panel with friends to assist budding students in NZ in their applications to PhD in America 29:50 American university shortlist 31:00 Kai Man would pick based on NCAA and chances of watching an NBA basketball prospect 33:10 Utsav and Lorenzo are San Antonio Spurs fans 34:10 Enjoying your time in university is important 34:57 What are the first two years of American PhDs like? 37:20 Utsav is still in particle physics but with a different focus 41:54 Applying for a PhD in a different country is confusing. Always ask for help from anyone. 42:54 Final question: what advice would you give to past you or other people in similar situations? Find us on all our socials: https://www.facebook.com/Scigradnz https://www.instagram.com/scigradnz/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/sgnz-science-grads-new-zealand/ Credit Logo: Denny Lee Intro: "Cali" By Jonas Bjørnstad (https://pixabay.com/music/beats-cali-1171/?fbclid=IwAR0yGsfL9GEURuj4VpzFIUKdXmmH1Pik3YxUokmsKJ1QLNQdaPJC-HKsNsg) Outro: "U Said It V13 Soundcloud" By Jonas Bjørnstad (https://pixabay.com/music/beats-u-said-it-v13-souncloud-1167/?fbclid=IwAR0tQaXzxiON3LN9hmMY14hZlVSafDuz8T3DIXfDBoKttlnEdpnTK9shyag)

  4. 10/21/2021

    S2E3 Justin Jang

    Justin works at Radically which is a management consulting firm that is helping transform and evolve some of New Zealand’s key organisations. He focuses on delivering projects that find process improvement, unlock business potential for growth and enable change by being a coach, facilitator and strategic-thinker. He previously worked at Ernst & Young as a Business Consultant after finishing his Master's Degree in Bioscience Enterprise and a Bachelor of Science majoring in Physiology at the University of Auckland. Timestamps 0:43 Justin intro 1:35 First question: what got you into science? 2:52 What did you do at rotary camp? 4:20 Did the "trial" period reflect what you experienced in uni 6:25 What made you decide to change degree direction after undergraduate? 8:10 It's okay to change career direction and degree 9:00 Justin's Bioscience Enterprise internship experience 11:52 Free advertisement 12:50 What the skills you learn in Bioscience Enterprise can be applied to elsewhere 14:03 What's the turning point that took you out of science to where you are now? 15:20 Communication is a very good skill 18:30 Justin's EY day-to-day and experiences 20:07 Work-life-balance 21:16 What do you do now with Radically? 25:04 Change can take forever regardless of company size 27:39 Radically is more on transformational and organization structure work 28:03 Taking the science thinking and applying it to something else completely different 28:30 Luck or effort to "escape" science? 29:19 Learning what your strengths are and your experiences 31:42 Embracing both your strengths and weaknessess and being comfortable with both 33:06 Final question: if you can go back in time to speak to young Justin, or anyone in a similar position of wanting to branch out from science, what would your advice be? Find us on all our socials: https://www.facebook.com/Scigradnz https://www.instagram.com/scigradnz/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/sgnz-science-grads-new-zealand/ Credit Logo: Denny Lee Intro: "Cali" By Jonas Bjørnstad (https://pixabay.com/music/beats-cali-1171/?fbclid=IwAR0yGsfL9GEURuj4VpzFIUKdXmmH1Pik3YxUokmsKJ1QLNQdaPJC-HKsNsg) Outro: "U Said It V13 Soundcloud" By Jonas Bjørnstad (https://pixabay.com/music/beats-u-said-it-v13-souncloud-1167/?fbclid=IwAR0tQaXzxiON3LN9hmMY14hZlVSafDuz8T3DIXfDBoKttlnEdpnTK9shyag)

  5. 10/14/2021

    S2E2 Kyrah Thumbadoo

    Kyrah shares her journey with us from how she got into science to how she ended up in her PhD! She started off doing a Bachelor of Health Science/Bachelor of Science conjoint with a focus in neuroscience and then did her honours in Pharmacology. She had a successful honours year and managed to prove a causal variant in Motor Neuron Disease (super cool!) She is now a PhD candidate at the Centre for Brain Research at the University of Auckland, still working on Motor Neuron Disease. She talks about struggles during her honours year, dealing with imposter syndrome before her PhD and how her supervisor inspired her to continue with her studies. We’ve loved to hear Kyrah’s story and we think you’ll appreciate it too! Timestamps 1:20 How Kyrah got into science 6:35 Why Kyrah went into Health Science instead of Biomed 10:05 What Kyrah did after undergrad 14:23 Kyrah’s honours project 19:50 Imposter Syndrome interfering with certainty of continuing studies 22:30 PhD project 30:00 Kyrah’s advice to her 18-year old self Find us on all our socials: https://www.facebook.com/Scigradnz https://www.instagram.com/scigradnz/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/sgnz-science-grads-new-zealand/ Credit Logo: Denny Lee Intro: "Cali" By Jonas Bjørnstad (https://pixabay.com/music/beats-cali-1171/?fbclid=IwAR0yGsfL9GEURuj4VpzFIUKdXmmH1Pik3YxUokmsKJ1QLNQdaPJC-HKsNsg) Outro: "U Said It V13 Soundcloud" By Jonas Bjørnstad (https://pixabay.com/music/beats-u-said-it-v13-souncloud-1167/?fbclid=IwAR0tQaXzxiON3LN9hmMY14hZlVSafDuz8T3DIXfDBoKttlnEdpnTK9shyag)

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Welcome to SGNZ! A weekly podcast hosted by Lorenzo and Kai Man where we discuss all things career wise for science grads who are unsure about where they want to go in the future.