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The Chemistry of a PhD

The Chemistry of a PhD

Ramblings of a Drug Discovery PhD student who should really be in the lab or writing her thesis.

Tag: phd

Posted on June 22, 2020June 29, 2020

What was I asked during my medicinal chemistry viva?

One of the most useful ways I prepared for my viva was by asking people who worked on similar PhD projects about their vivas and what they were asked. Below is a detailed but non-exhaustive list of questions and concepts I vaguely remember talking about during my viva. I hope it is useful as a …

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Posted on June 12, 2020June 15, 2020

Finishing my PhD in lockdown

Selfie of Fiona in a mustard yellow top smiling and waving I’ve been neglecting this site of late - apologies! Quite a bit has happened since my last post - global pandemic and protests against racism aside. I’ve written my thesis, defended it, corrected it and now I’m waiting for the official bit of paper …

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Posted on March 29, 2019March 25, 2019

What’s on my lab bench?

Most people have a desk as a place of work. I’m lucky enough to have three workspaces as a chemist: my desk, my lab bench, and my fume hood, all for different aspects of chemistry research. Today I’m going to give you a tour around my lab bench! My lab bench is used to carry …

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Posted on January 2, 2019January 4, 2019

Science Conferences I went to in 2018

Over the course of a PhD, students are encouraged to leave the lab from time to time to go to conferences to learn about other kinds of research going on in their field. Science conferences gather researchers from academia and industry. In this post I will talk about the different conferences I went to in …

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Posted on December 10, 2018December 10, 2018

Reflections on second year

This is my last week in the lab of 2018. It’s only really four days because we're having our group’s Christmas party on Friday (laser quest and pub lunch) and then I’m at a conference on Monday before taking the rest of the week off before Christmas. Towards the end of first year I wrote …

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Posted on November 26, 2018November 26, 2018

Chemistry PhD: A Day in the Life

I find people’s routines really interesting. Everybody’s different. Some people are early birds while others are night owls. Some people work long hours and others manage to fit a lot of work into a short period of time. In this post I chat about what a typical day looks like for me and the various …

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Posted on November 19, 2018November 19, 2018

How do I know I’ve made the right molecule?

I spend my days in a chemistry lab making drug-like molecules. A lot of these end up being small quantities (less than 0.1 g!) and usually have the appearance of a white/off-white powder. Occasionally I get a colour which is very exciting. The question a non-chemist might ask is “how do you know you’ve made …

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Posted on November 13, 2018November 13, 2018

Why did I want to do cancer research?

My PhD project involves designing and making “tool molecules” that might lead to new cancer drugs one day. Medicinal chemistry covers a vast range of disease areas and many scientists often have a personal connection to their particular field. In this post I will discuss some of the personal experiences that motivated me to pursue …

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About me

Hi there! Thank you for visiting my blog. My name is Fiona Scott.

In 2020, during Covid-19 lockdown, I finished a PhD degree I had carried out at University of Sussex, UK. My project involved making drug-like molecules for targeting a process we don’t fully understand yet.

I enjoyed sharing the highs and lows of PhD life on this blog and my instagram account. You can now follow my writing adventures at fionascottwrites.com.

 

Instagram @thechemistryofaphd

👩🏻‍🎓Graduation Day👩🏻‍🎓
📱Apps for PhD success📱
Am I actually a Dr yet? Not officially [edit: now I am!]
Before the viva...and after!

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Recent Posts

  • How I secured an ideal post-PhD job during lockdown September 4, 2020
  • Software and Apps that helped me during my PhD June 29, 2020
  • What was I asked during my medicinal chemistry viva? June 22, 2020
  • Cross Stitching a Chemistry A-Z June 15, 2020
  • Finishing my PhD in lockdown June 12, 2020
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