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My Main Tasks
I work within a team aiming to understand the water quality dynamics of rivers in agricultural settings. I collaborate with other researchers and am responsible for designing experiments, analyzing the results of long-term monitoring, supervising PhD students and communicating our results.
What I Like
Seeing one of my papers in print after many months of planning, analysis, writing and review is extremely satisfying. I also enjoy fieldwork, whether it involves field-scale experiments, setting up monitoring stations or conducting soil and river surveys. It’s fun to see so much of the countryside in every season.
Challenges
Researchers in my field have to be very flexible and ready for anything. Some weeks I meet with policy makers in Dublin on a Monday, sample rivers in Cork on Tuesday, analyze samples in a university in Galway on Wednesday and work in the office or lab in Wexford on Thursday and Friday. So being prepared is a crucial skill, and you need to be able to mentally switch between very different tasks. This diversity is also one of the best things about my job. It is never boring.
Who Influenced Me
Despite not having an agricultural background, I always felt it was extremely important and was keen to be involved. I was certain that I wanted to study agricultural science, and while I was in UCD I became more and more interested in soil and hydrology in particular. My MSc and PhD research projects focused on soil and water quality. These two aspects underpin much of our agriculture and hence, are economically as well as intrinsically important. After my PhD, I was a post-doctoral researcher in Kansas State University. Living in America, it was exciting to see Irish brands like Dairygold marketed as premium, high-quality, almost luxury goods. I loved seeing our agricultural industry thriving in that way, so for me, agri-environmental research is the place to be! I became a member of the Soil Science Society of America several years ago, on the advice of my PhD supervisor, and that group provided major training and networking opportunities, and helped me to progress in my career.
Work/Life Balance
I think it does. There are certainly demanding aspects, but the opportunities afforded by it are huge. I have had the chance to travel both in Europe and America, and to develop those skills, such as fieldwork and writing, which I find particularly interesting.
Most Useful Aspects of my Education
My bachelor’s degree gave me a broad introduction to Irish and European agriculture. Understanding this context frames my research and helps me to understand its potential implications and uses.Completing my PhD taught me to be a problem solver. When you do a PhD you are striving to push forward the boundary of understanding on a very specific topic, and this requires a lot of patience and a resilient approach to challenges. I think these skills are useful in any career, but certainly in research. During my post-doc in Kansas State University I taught graduate and undergraduate students, which taught me a great deal about how to explain challenging subjects.
Useful Work Experience
Often laboratories and research institutes will accept students for work placements, and this can help develop lab skills and allow you to test if research is the career you want to pursue. As part of my bachelor’s degree I did work placements on several different farms. This let me see their practical, day-to-day operation, and really deepened my understanding of the industry.
