What Can I Do with a Science Degree?

Your science degree opens up many career options. To choose a career, you n eed to consider the extent to which you would like to use your scientific knowledge in your future career. You may choose to work in pure science, applied science, an alternative career requiring an understanding of science or use the general skills you have acquired while studying.

A lso, you have gained a high level of technical ability alongside general skills which will make you more employable.

Careers for science graduates fall into three main categories:

• Careers using your specialist science knowledge

• Careers where an understanding of science is an advantage

• Careers using your other skills

Those of you who have thoroughly enjoyed studying your major* at the university may like to continue to work in science. Science is a diversifying industry with new doors opening all the time. If you want to find work in a specialized area related to your major, you may find that you need more than a pass degree*. Professional scientists usually have at least an honours degree but more likely a PhD, particularly if working in research areas.

Occupations which would allow you to work with your expertise include:

R esearch - university academic, environmental researcher, agricultural researcher, marine scientist, biotechnologist, physicist, research scientist, laboratory research technician, etc.

Analysis and investigation - forensic investigator, IT systems analyst, statistician, clinical research associate in pharmaceutical industry, nutritionist and/or dietitian, analytical chemist, geophysical technician, etc.

Consultancy - environmental information consultant, agricultural consultant, IT consultant, IT systems developer, information services officer, geoscientist, etc.

Quality control - clinical research associate, environmental health officer, resource manager, toxicology consultant, water treatment consultant, quality assurance officer, quality control area of manufacturing company, etc.

P roduct and process development - pharmacologist, industrial chemist, product designer, process mapping assistant, etc.

Scientists are found in such industries as biotechnology, telecommunications, IT, electronic-design-automation as well as in academic institutions, hospitals, pharmaceutical and utility companies and research organizations.

The industry you choose will have an effect on the type of work you do. Many industries require the application of scientific knowledge to solve practical problems such as utilising resources, developing new products or ensuring safe use for humans.

(Abridged from:http://www.careers.usyd.edu.au/students/careeropt/degree_science.shtml)

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major – здесь специализация

pass degree – здесь степень, присуждаемая после сдачи выпускных экзаменов в университете по облегчённой программе

Discuss

• When choosing a career what does a graduate with a science degree should take into account?

• What are the career opportunities for science students in your country?

• Which field/area of science should you choose as your major in order to get the job you like?

• Which jobs mentioned in the text would you like to do most? Give reasons for your choice.

• What kind of skills do you think are necessary for the job you would like to do most?

Listening

1. Listen to the interview with two young scientists describing their attitude to the jobs they are doing. Complete the chart below:

	Hours	Job satisfaction	Teamwork and competition
Speaker 1
Speaker 2

Discuss

Agree or disagree with the following:

• Being a scientist means to be ‘slaving’ in the lab 24 hours a day as it is the only way to be a success.

• Mega things happen once in a lifetime, so a really ambitious researcher won’t get any job satisfaction discovering new things in a small way.

• To make an outstanding discovery or invention you should have the intellectual freedom.

• It’s not a good idea to co-operate and share the results of your research with other scientists if you want to be the first person to make that all-important discovery.

Get Real

Study help A Curriculum Vitae, commonly referred to as CV (AmE resume) is a written record of your education and the jobs you have done, that you send when you are applying for a job. It is a detailed summary not only of your academic backgrounds but also teaching and research experience, publications, presentations, awards, honors and other details.

Search the Internet to find some tips and/or rules on writing a CV. Discuss them as a class and create a Class File on CV writing rules.

Writing

1. Write your CV for a job of your choice (say what it is). Use your own details and qualifications and work experience which you hope to get in the future.

2. With the partner exchange your CVs and check out if your CVs follow the rules on CV writing.

Roleplay

In the Realm of Jobs

We all have certain skills which will be useful to employers. Some of the words listed below are ideal "active words" for you to use when describing yourself in your resume and in the job application process. For each skill on these lists, state whether you:

• have that skill already (put a V)

• don't have it yet but have the potential to develop it (put a ?)

• will never have that skill (put a X)

People Skills guiding listening to negotiating with instructing supervising understanding persuading speaking to serving helping encouraging leading motivating disciplining organizing directing evaluating coaching/teaching

Word Skills coordinating processing organising classifying copying typing proof reading editing composing communicating writing reading imagining researching compiling comparing

Figure Skills counting calculating timing recording compiling comparing correcting analysing graphing problem solving planning

Skills with things driving operating installing making repairing adjusting producing changing adapting creating classifying using improving collecting selling growing

Unit 2. Progress Monitoring In this Unit you have worked on the vocabulary related to the topic “Job and career Options” to choose a science career to use specialist science knowledge a research vacancy to work in research areas lab or research culture/experience to gain high-level technical ability or general skills to try out an alternative career to apply scientific knowledge to solve practical problems to achieve a dream job to have a passion for research the cutting-edge research to work in pure/applied science to hire someone as a full/part-time employee to share one’s research results with colleagues to make valuable contacts to get job satisfaction to acquire skills/knowledge team work and competition Tick (V) the points you are confident about and cross (X) the ones you need to revise.

Unit 3 Review

1. Rewrite the sentences in reported speech. Use various verbs of speaking.

1. I’m afraid I can’t take the job before January. (She explained …)

2. Paul Smith has just come back from his yearlong expedition around the globe.

3. Now, if you look at this graph you will see the temperature changes in this region over 50 years.

4. I’m sure in 2050 thousands of people will be living in giant space stations.

5. Studying the dolphins’ behavior was the most exciting thing I’ve ever done.

6. No, you are wrong! The course starting date is next week, not tomorrow!

7. Peter is so absent-minded! Last week he had an accident in our chemistry lab. He broke a test tube with some toxic substance in it!

8. Hello, everybody! Let me introduce Mia Travis to you. She is a new member of the ‘Whale Programme’ team.

9. Sorry, I can’t take your point.

10. Why don’t we do a summer internship?

2. Continue the sentences with the most suitable phrasal verb in the box. Be sure to use the correct form of the verb.

1. I’m a member of three university clubs so I __________ every other day.

2. She started a degree but __________ after only a year.

3. I agree, this problem is difficult but I’ve __________ a new way of doing it!

4. In my job I often __________ meeting deadlines.

5. I’m sure we need __________ a society for dealing with environmental issues in you city.

6. Look, Peter, I can’t ___________ your being so inaccurate in measurements. You should ___________ the numbers you’ve got.

7. This test tube is very fragile so ___________ very carefully or it’ll break down.

8. I’ve recently __________ one more explanation of this theorem.

9. If you want __________ your class you need to practise a lot of programming.

3. Within 1 minute complete the word web for the noun job.

4. From the words below make nouns describing people by adding suffixes –er, -or, -ist, -ar, -ant/ent -tian/cian. Make any necessary spelling changes.

teach	research	science	experiment	mathematics
assist	direct	geography	technical	environment
analysis	consult	develop	part-time	design

5. Explain the difference between these pairs.

job career

industry academia

perks bonuses

manual work paper work

job experience job skills

challenging rewarding

dream job holiday job

6. Read the letter of application and fill in the gaps with the words in the box.

degree skills suited Career Search team needs benefit responsibilities application contact position background qualifications

December 12, 2007 Mr. Robert Burns President, Template Division MEGATEK Corporation 9845 Technical Way Arlington, VA 22207 burns@megatek.com Dear Mr. Burns, I learned of MEGATEK through online research using the a) -------------- database through Career Services at Virginia Tech where I am completing my Master's b) ------------ in Mechanical Engineering. From my research on your web site, I believe there would be a good fit between my c) --------------- and interests and your d) ---------------. I am interested in a software engineering e) --------------- upon completion of my degree in May 2010. As a graduate student, I am one of six members on a software development f) ---------- where we are writing a computer aided aircraft design program for NASA. My g) -------------- include designing, coding, and testing of a graphical portion of the program which requires the use of GIARO for graphics input and output. I have a strong h) --------------- in computer aided design, software development and engineering, and believe that these skills would i) ------------- the designing and manufacturing aspects of Template software. Enclosed is my resume which further outlines my j) ----------------------. My qualifications make me well k) --------------- to the project areas in which your division of MEGATEK is expanding its efforts. I would appreciate the opportunity to discuss a position with you, and will l) -------------- you in a week or ten days to answer any questions you may have and to see if you need any other information from me such as a company m) ------------ form or transcripts. Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, William Stevens 123 Ascot Lane Blacksburg, VA 24060 (540) 555-2556 WStevens@vt.edu Resume attached as MS Word document

7. Read these sayings. Comment on the one you like most.

• “Real success is finding your lifework in the work that you love.” David McCullough

• “The secret of greatness is simple: do better work than any other man in your field - and keep on doing it.” Wilfred A. Peterson

• “No problem is insurmountable. With a little courage, teamwork and determination a person can overcome anything.” B. Dodge

• “Striving for success without hard work is like trying to harvest where you haven't planted.” David Bly

8. Game: Guess the job

Work in teams. One of you should think about a job in your subject area and the others in the group must try to guess what the job is by asking “Yes” and “No” questions about it. Make sure everyone asks the same number of questions.

Example: In your job…

Do you work… outside? inside? in a lab? etc.		Do you have to be … ambitious? imaginative? good with numbers?
Do you have to … have special qualifications? work under supervision? wear a uniform?		Do you … work on your own? use any kind of tool? instruct other people?

Each one teach one

Write down a short vocabulary list (10 items) on the topic “Job” and compare your lists with the partner. Cross out the items you have on both lists and explain the meaning of the rest of the words and phrases.