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Sarah Ashworth, who is based at the University of Manchester, is passionate about all things to do with careers for researchers. Sarah helps postgraduate students, PhD researchers and staff – as well as others – realise their career plans. Separately, she is also the founder of Sarah Ashworth Professional Development Consulting, where she uses her experience to offer bespoke coaching, workshops and career strategies to individuals and organisations.
In this episode Sarah recalls being the first in her family to go to university after receiving a contextualised offer in recognition of her achievement and remembers the benefits she gained from a Nuffield Foundation placement ahead of studying pathology and microbiology at Bristol University.
She also talks about working in water quality control for AstraZeneca in her industrial placement year and her PhD research work on 'plastic eating fungi' which was back in the news, shortly ahead of the podcast recording (April 2024).
Interested in environmental science and environmental consulting, Sarah volunteered with Groundwork UK before taking what she thought would be a temporary post as a careers advisor for the University of Manchester.
After recognising she had found her niche, Sarah opted for this as her own career, and has been using her knowledge as a researcher, supervisor and scientist throughout the last two decades guiding others as they fulfil their aims and find their own pathways to a satisfying career.
Sarah discusses:
University of Manchester
Groundwork UK
Nuffield Foundation Placements
UK Government study in the UK
The Life Scientific podcast with Jim Al-Khalili
Fungi in concrete at Chernobyl
Plastic eating fungi
Season 1 Episode 1: Rae Wilkinson, award winning garden landscape designer, who volunteered to gain work experience
Season 1 Episode 4: Sarah Kessell, CEO of The Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales, who also advocates volunteering as a means of gaining work experience
Season 1 Episode 7: Rachel Warren, professor of global change and environmental biology
Season 1 Episode 6: Mark Sumner, sustainable fashion lecturer at Leeds University
© 2024 - 2025 Sandra Kessell. All rights reserved.
