Can you introduce yourself, your role in the university and tell us a bit about your background?
I am Laura Harkness, a professor in the nuclear physics group and Associate Pro-Vice Chancellor for Research and Impact for the Faculty of Science and Engineering. I was born and raised in Northern Ireland and then moved to Liverpool to study for an MPHYS physics degree. I stayed in Liverpool to do my PhD, which was designing a radiation detection system for medical imaging. After my PhD I spent a couple of years working as a Postdoctoral researcher at Liverpool and then went to work as a Senior Scientist at a radiation detection company based in the North East of England. In that role I led the design of radiation detector systems that were sold commercially. I moved back into academia shortly after that, I did postdoctoral research and then worked my way up to the roles I have now.
Why did you choose to work in the University of Liverpool?
The University of Liverpool is a good fit to my research interests. My area of research is in nuclear physics and Liverpool is one of the best universities that have the infrastructure, equipment and collaborators within the University that I can work with. I also really love the culture at the University, I think it is a really diverse and welcoming community, much like the city itself.
What does a typical workday involve for you?
They vary significantly because I have these two different roles. Most of my time is not spent in the physics role, it’s spent in the leadership role, so I represent the Faculty of Science and Engineering on institutional committees and work on policy development and developing strategies around research and impact for the faculty. In physics I have a team working on postdoctoral research and PhD students as well. So, I talk to them about the research that they are doing and help them with writing their papers and give feedback, as well as helping them to interpret the results. I may also be writing research grants to help fund some of our research activity. During term time I teach medical physics modules and support students undertaking research projects.
What research are you currently undertaking?
My area of research in nuclear physics is radiation detection and measurement. I develop new detectors and techniques and deploy them for gamma ray spectroscopy and gamma ray imaging, which allows you to image where gamma rays are coming from in space. That can be used in lots of different scenarios, for example nuclear decommissioning and medical imaging. I lead a national cancer diagnosis research network, which brings people together from the physics communities with other disciplines and people who work in hospitals. We try to think about how physics can help to solve some of the big challenges in cancer diagnosis.
What is your favourite part of this research?
Working with other people. The research that I do is inherently very multidisciplinary. Medical imaging is a good example where I get to meet people in health and life sciences, and those that work in different industries. I really enjoy working with and learning from different people and how they approach problems. I think physicists are good problem solvers but when you put experts from different disciplines together it can generate new ideas and ways of thinking, so the sum of the parts is better than what we can do individually.
Why did you choose to pursue a career in physics?
That’s a funny one because I never thought I would be a physicist. Up until GCSE I did not like physics at all, I ended up doing A-level physics as a last-minute change and I really enjoyed it. So that made me start thinking about what the options were, my school were very keen to engage me in engineering or medicine. I preferred the thought of doing something more open ended where I could transfer into different sectors and job types. So, I chose to do physics mainly because of the breadth of opportunities available to me afterwards. Ever since then I made all my decisions in my career based on what I found interesting. I went to work in industry because a job became available that was interesting at the time, then I came back to academia because there was an interesting project that I could work on. I pursue the things that I think will interest me because that is what motivates me to be successful in those areas.
How have your past experiences shaped your approach to your teaching and research?
My industry experience is quite interesting because I think about the researcher I was before I went there and how my approaches changed afterwards. The industrial sector works very differently, they are driven in a very different way than the university sector. It really makes you think about how to work with other partners and how to think about why they are motivated to work with you. I think in terms of changing my approach to research it means that I try to put myself in other people’s shoes more which is really helpful when I work in these areas as nuclear decommissioning and medical imaging aren’t really my sectors. Being able to understand other people and what they are driven by is important. In teaching I have tried to bring in some of that learning from industry as well. I have used connections within industry to bring guest speakers in for seminars and use this to help students with what could opportunities are available after their degree.
Did you face any challenges along the way and how did you overcome them?
The biggest time of challenge in my career was when I was a postdoc. That is because of the way that people doing postdoctoral research are funded on a specific project that runs out and then you must apply to another project at possibly a different university. For personal reasons I became quite attached to Liverpool and my family is settled here now, so it’s a big challenge to think about marking out your career path based on those short-term contracts. That is what caused me to go and work in industry to try and relocate there with a longer-term solution, but actually that is not everything, I was drawn back to Liverpool and worked hard to try and earn my long-term academic contract. But that was probably the biggest challenge trying to map out that time of uncertainty.
How would you describe the environment at the University of Liverpool?
I think the University and especially the Physics Department is a very friendly and welcoming environment. That is my personal perspective, I have worked here for a really long time, and I have been a student here too. Things change because people come and go but we have an open culture in the department. I think people want to help you if you have queries and questions, you can always find someone. We have a positive environment here which is enriched by the diversity of staff and students that we have.
What advice would you give someone considering a career in physics?
Do it! A career in physics really does open a lot of different options to you and that is what drove me to do it. I was a bit indecisive and didn’t want to commit to a specific area of engineering for example and physics does allow you to explore what you would like to do during your degree. It gives you a lot of transferable skills which are helpful in many different types of employment and in life generally. I think it is clearly a really good career to go into. In terms of advice, chat to current students or recent graduates to try and learn a little bit more about their experiences as well.
What are you hoping to achieve in the future?
I would like to keep research active so making sure that I am still able to bring in funding that will support a research team. I really enjoy working with my team of students and postdocs and that is an important part of my job, so I see that as really rewarding. Working with people who are full of enthusiasm at the start of their career, ready to make the next discovery is a really exciting time in your research career. So, I want to make sure to sustain and maybe even grow that area. I do like my leadership role in the University too so I would like to continue in senior leadership in the long term.
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