“I am a recipient of the SULSA ScotCHEM Natural Products in the Bio-economy funding grant. Although the project has been delayed due to the pandemic, leading a funding call as a the main PI has been an excellent training process for future grant applications. Moreover, this award has boosted my CV and I am sure will help me in my next career steps as it is important to demonstrate skills on funding acquisition.”

Dr Sylvia Soldatou
SULSA ECR Rep, University of Robert Gordon

“SULSA has provided me with invaluable opportunities and support in recent years. In my role as SULSA ECR representative, I have sat on award and funding panels, been a member of the Disruptive Technologies Conference organising committee, and tweeted about the funding landscape and research activity in Life Sciences across all sectors in Scotland. These experiences have equipped me with vital knowledge, skills, and networks for progressing my career. As a direct result, I have been able to form two new collaborations that each secured SULSA seed funding towards establishing independent lines of research.”

Dr Christine Merrick
SULSA ECR Rep, University of Edinburgh

“I was involved in the launching event of Scottish Natural Products Network (SNaPNet) where I moderated the sessions on “What training do graduates need for a career in NPs”. As an ECR actively working and building a career on natural products research, this networking event has been a great opportunity to meet and interact with scientists from academia and industry based in Scotland who share the same interested in natural products. It has expanded my network and is great to know that there is great potential for future collaborations.”

Dr Sylvia Soldatou
SULSA ECR Rep, University of Robert Gordon

“SULSA has helped me make invaluable connections with others in a number of Scottish Universities’ and ‘I have been supported by SULSA to attend a number of SULSA’s conferences and skills training courses which I found insightful and I would recommend others to attend in the future.”

Dr Gemma Barron
SULSA ECR Rep, University of Robert Gordon

“Inspired by the successful Breaking Barriers in STEM first event, I am currently a member of the Breaking Barriers in STEM: Mental Health & Wellbeing Working Group. Along with other ECRs and senior scientists we aim to identify issues that are jeopardising our wellbeing within academia, and propose solutions. As an advocate of work life balance and prioritising our wellbeing, this opportunity has allowed me to share my thoughts on this matter and to help build a better academic environment for future generations.”

Dr Sylvia Soldatou
SULSA ECR Rep, University of Robert Gordon

“SULSA has provided numerous and impactful ways to create an active network of researchers, especially early career researchers, across Scotland. One of the events SULSA helped me organised was the Infectious Diseases Research Initiative in Scotland (IDRIS) satellite meeting for ECRs working in parasitology. This event attracted over 100 attendees, mostly ECRs, and promoted open and positive discussions about career progression, alternative career paths, as well as lots of networking opportunities.”

Dr Juan F. Quintana
SULSA ECR Rep, University of Glasgow