TY - JOUR
T1 - Outreach
T2 - Impact on Skills and Future Careers of Postgraduate Practitioners Working with the Bristol ChemLabS Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning
AU - Harrison, Timothy G.
AU - Alexander, Shirin
AU - Barron, Nick
AU - Bonham, Jessica
AU - Correa Ascencio, Marisol
AU - Chapman, Andrew
AU - Cheesman, Ben
AU - England, Matthew
AU - Fletcher, Jane
AU - Flynn, Stephanie
AU - Fiadzomor, Phyllis
AU - Fothergill, James
AU - Greco, Claudio
AU - Griffith, Ash
AU - Hanford, Kate
AU - Kaur, Preeti
AU - Khan, M. Anwar H.
AU - Ingle, Rebecca
AU - Inglis, Gordon
AU - Laurain, Adele
AU - Liddle, Emma
AU - Medley, Marcus I.
AU - Ndukwe, Ikenna
AU - Rivett, Alison
AU - Sage, Rebecca
AU - Schnepp, Zoe
AU - Sellou, Linda
AU - Shaw, Katherine E.
AU - Street, Steve
AU - Tatolo, Godiraone
AU - Wellington, Rachel
AU - Shallcross, Dudley E.
N1 - Acknowledgments:
We thank Bristol ChemLabS under whose auspices various aspects of this work was carried out. Additional funders of the work described include the Royal Society of Chemistry, STEM Learning, Triple Science Network, the Primary Science Teaching Trust, and the University of Bristol Widening Participation Unit.
PY - 2023/11/14
Y1 - 2023/11/14
N2 - Postgraduate engagement in delivering outreach activities is more commonplace than it once was. However, the impact on postgraduate students (typically studying for a Ph.D. degree) of participating in the delivery of these outreach activities has rarely, if ever, been recorded. The Bristol ChemLabS Outreach program has been running for ca. 17 years, and in that time, many postgraduate students have been involved (approximately 500), with around 250 typically for up to 3 years. We sought to investigate the impact of outreach engagement on postgraduate alumni who were involved in the program for over 3 years (32) and how the experiences and training of the outreach program had impacted on their careers postgraduation. Thirty of the 32 postgraduates engaged and ∼70% reported that their outreach experience had influenced their decision making on future careers. Many respondents reported that the skills and experiences gained through outreach participation had contributed to success in applying for and interviewing at their future employers. All respondents reported that outreach had helped them to develop key skills that were valued in the workplace, specifically, communication, teamwork, organizational skills, time planning, event planning, and event management. Rather than a pleasant distraction or an opportunity to supplement income, all participants noted that they felt there were many additional benefits and that this was time well spent. Outreach should not be viewed as a distraction to science research but rather an important enhancement to it provided that the program is well constructed and seeks to develop those delivering the outreach activities.
AB - Postgraduate engagement in delivering outreach activities is more commonplace than it once was. However, the impact on postgraduate students (typically studying for a Ph.D. degree) of participating in the delivery of these outreach activities has rarely, if ever, been recorded. The Bristol ChemLabS Outreach program has been running for ca. 17 years, and in that time, many postgraduate students have been involved (approximately 500), with around 250 typically for up to 3 years. We sought to investigate the impact of outreach engagement on postgraduate alumni who were involved in the program for over 3 years (32) and how the experiences and training of the outreach program had impacted on their careers postgraduation. Thirty of the 32 postgraduates engaged and ∼70% reported that their outreach experience had influenced their decision making on future careers. Many respondents reported that the skills and experiences gained through outreach participation had contributed to success in applying for and interviewing at their future employers. All respondents reported that outreach had helped them to develop key skills that were valued in the workplace, specifically, communication, teamwork, organizational skills, time planning, event planning, and event management. Rather than a pleasant distraction or an opportunity to supplement income, all participants noted that they felt there were many additional benefits and that this was time well spent. Outreach should not be viewed as a distraction to science research but rather an important enhancement to it provided that the program is well constructed and seeks to develop those delivering the outreach activities.
KW - Public Understanding of Science/Outreach
KW - Thematic Content Analysis with a Deductive Approach
KW - Higher Education Institutes and Outreach Funders
U2 - 10.1021/acs.jchemed.3c00261
DO - 10.1021/acs.jchemed.3c00261
M3 - Article
SN - 0021-9584
VL - 100
SP - 4270
EP - 4278
JO - Journal of Chemical Education
JF - Journal of Chemical Education
IS - 11
ER -