Your Value As a Researcher Is More Than Your Research Profile

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Your Value As a Researcher Is More Than Your Research Profile

As life scientists, our research or academic profile is a reflection of our past and present research activities and accomplishments. Building your research profile as an academic is important, regardless of field or discipline. It is your unique “fingerprint” as a researcher. Furthermore, it carries weight for academic and grant applications, promotions, awards.

Due to the significant impact that it has in our scientific careers, planning and developing our research profiles can feel stressful. To help ease the pressure, I firmly believe that we need to focus on changing our mindset as well.

In this blog, I wanted to share several thoughts for other researchers to ponder over.

A research profile is more than what we commonly define it as

“A research profile is just about the topic or field you are currently focused on and the compilation of activities that you have accomplished relating to it.” This was my response when asked for my thoughts on what a research profile was, and I believe plenty of us academics – especially those in the early stages of their career – would similarly think this way. We primarily base our research profile on the number of publications, the impact factor of the journals we are published in, the number of citations, our h-index, etc.

Although this ideology is not entirely wrong, it is not complete either. The problem with this view is that it can cause a form of tunnel vision – limiting people to “stay within their lane” – and can be counter-productive to research. It can also devalue certain skills that might be considered as “less productive”, such as teaching and science communication. Furthermore, viewing research profiles in terms of these metrics alone can also be a source of stress for many researchers. Not feeling good enough, and as a result overworking to achieve goal after goal can lead to mental health issues commonly reported by academics, especially those at the beginning of their career. Although the system exacerbates the problem by encouraging this mentality, I believe that the onus is on us as researchers to shift the way we view our research profiles.

I suggest that our research profiles be viewed equally through the lens of the “soft skills” we have developed. Our academic experience outlined in our research profiles should not only highlight the techniques we have learned – such as coding, isolating RNA, or immunostaining human tissue – but also our ability to carry out independent research, to critically analyse results, and to solve complex problems. Viewing our research profile beyond the “typical” metrics opens up a world of possibilities, where researchers can search for opportunities to strengthen what skills they have and focus on the skills they want to develop further. This in turn encourages creativity, and helps researchers to become more adaptable and resilient.

It is very easy to believe that our research profile reflects our worth as a researcher, especially since the current system of academia puts a lot of value in gathering measurable credentials. We invest so much of ourselves – our time, our efforts, our resources – that we start to get emotionally attached to what we have in our research profile.

It is important to remember that your research profile is not your worth as a researcher. It is simply a reflection of your research activities and accomplishments thus far. I’m not saying it is unimportant, because it is. But I believe we need to stop putting so much weight on our research profile alone as our only metric for our sense of professional self-worth.

There are several facets that shape who you are as a researcher, many of which may not necessarily be encapsulated and explicitly mentioned in your research profile. I believe that if we start consciously viewing our worth as more than our research profiles, it will benefit our mental health and our productivity.

Know who you are and what your values are as a researcher

Now that we have talked about how you can reframe your research profile, the next step is to determine your real goal as a researcher. As one of my high school teachers aptly put it: “It is all about beginning with the end in mind.” First, you need to conceptualize your ultimate goal, then you can start to decipher how you can meaningfully develop your research profile.

As a PhD candidate in the early stages of my career, it feels like this is the best time to start thinking about and making choices about the type of researcher that you want to be, and the ethos you want to encapsulate. This will of course change throughout your career, as you gain new experiences your ideas and values are likely to shift. However, focusing on this now is a good starting point to determine the next steps to take.

For example, if you want to be an academic that publishes a lot, you will want to put more focus on writing journal articles. If you want to focus on science communication, start building your network of media contacts and community groups, perhaps initially using social media. If you want to influence scientific ethics and policy, get involved in regulatory committees and boards. The moment you start thinking clearly about the type of researcher you want to be, the easier it is for you to focus on what you should be doing more or less of.

Surround yourself with good people

Once you have figured out what type of researcher you want to be, ensure you have a network of people that can help you realise your ambition. As the common adage goes: “The people you surround yourself with, you become.” You want to surround yourself with people who embody your values as a researcher, who you aspire to be like, and who want to see you succeed. They will inspire you, remind you and motivate you to become the researcher you want to be.

To draw on my personal experiences, I am inspired by Distinguished Professor Sir Richard Faull and Professor Mike Dragunow who both wonderfully combine rigorous, high-calibre science with such curiosity for how the brain works. In addition, they both exude warmth and kindness for patients who suffer from neurological diseases, with the zeal to understand how diseases work so they can develop treatments and make the lives of patients better. I gravitated towards them, as they can help me flourish and exhibit the same qualities in my science. My teaching skills have also developed and grown because of the amazing opportunities provided by Ms. Angela Tsai, one of the Teaching Fellows in our Faculty.

My supervisor, Dr. Malvindar Singh-Bains, is passionate about science communication. She has greatly supported my development in this area by encouraging me to pursue science communication within local and national communities, and providing me with countless opportunities to speak with and listen to patients, clinicians, high school students and philanthropists. These are just some of the many people in my network who continue to inspire and support me in my academic journey as I build my research profile, and I would encourage you to surround yourself with people who will do the same for you.

In summary

Developing and shifting our mindset towards our research profiles is critical. We should value our skills as much as we value our achievements, and avoid using the “typical” metrics to measure our worth as a researcher. This only leads to stress and feelings of inadequacy.

Instead, we should begin the process of developing our research profiles by deciding which type of researcher we want to be, and surrounding ourselves with a network of supportive, like-minded individuals. While we may not be able to directly change the current system in academia, I believe this mindset will better prepare new academics to face the challenges the system poses, protect their wellbeing, and increase their chances of career fulfilment.

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Daniel Austria is a PhD candidate and a University Doctoral Scholar at the University of Auckland’s Centre for Brain Research. His current research focuses on understanding the role of non-neuronal cells in Alzheimer's disease using post-mortem human brain tissue and post-mortem human brain-derived primary cell cultures. He hopes that through his research, we can develop better therapies for Alzheimer's.

Besides his research, Daniel is also an advocate for youth affected by Huntington’s Disease via the Huntington’s Disease Youth Organisation – New Zealand (HDYO-NZ). He has a passion for science communication and teaching and teaches a range of practical undergraduate medical science laboratories focused on human anatomy and physiology. Beyond his teaching and research, he also loves a good game of basketball or a nice trek up the mountains with his partner and his trusty camera.

Here’s how you can connect with Daniel online:

• Twitter: @MD_R_Austria
• Instagram: @sirgawaine777
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/micah-daniel-austria/

You can also read our interview with Daniel here.