Dr Rebecca Burns (Innovation Fellow: STARS Project)

Name: Dr Rebecca Burns (Becca)

Subject: BSc Physical Geography; PhD with the Centre for Global Eco-Innovation in Glacial Geochemistry, sponsor company Isoprime UK (now Elementar UK Ltd)

Year Graduated: 2012 (BSc- 1st class honours); 2016 (PhD)

College: Grizedale, Graduate

Where are you now and what are you doing?
After completing my degree in Physical Geography in June 2012 I briefly went to work for Lancashire Constabulary as a 999 call handler before coming back in October 2012 to begin my PhD with the Centre for Global Eco-Innovation. Upon finishing my PhD I took up a role as an Innovation Fellow with STARS CDT. Whilst I am currently based at Lancaster, I work across the STARS network liaising with students, supervisors and management board members across a variety of institutions including Bangor University, Rothamsted Research and BGS. Through my role I deliver a range of  innovation based added value activities for the 22 STARS PhD students. The overall aim of this is to enhance their PhD experience, provide future employment opportunities and provide linkages between academia, industry and policy. I feel the structure of my PhD with the Centre for Global Eco-innovation provides me with a wealth of experience to do this. So far I have organised a 3 day training event focussing on innovation, entrepreneurship and effective knowledge exchange, liaised with other Universities to allow STARS students to attend workshops and training events there and secured three government policy placements (2 with Defra and 1 with the House of Lords). Since our students are based all over the country I get to travel frequently, I’ve visited each institution, participated in residential training events, attended conferences and I’ve also had the opportunity to train in Westminster.

What would you like to do next?
As this is a temporary role ending in May I’m now beginning to plan my next steps. Ideally I want to continue in Knowledge Exchange and I am currently exploring roles within government and consultancy companies. Being able to travel with my current employment has given me a taste of a variety of environments and my long term goal is to live and work in London.

Why did you choose to study at Lancaster?

For my undergraduate course I was really drawn to the idea of a modern campus University. I loved the student village feel and the facilities at Lancaster are excellent. The opportunities offered on a geography degree are second to none, and the Lancaster Environment Centre (LEC) is big enough to be a key international player, but small enough to have a sense of community.

At undergraduate level you get to know your lecturers within LEC. Their knowledge and passion for their subjects is outstanding. I particularly enjoyed my glaciology modules and also took part in a field trip to Iceland. It was this experience that was pivotal in the decision to undertake a PhD studying Icelandic Glaciers, and my lecturer Dr Peter Wynn was influential in this- eventually becoming my PhD supervisor. The fact I had the opportunity to work with a company through the Centre for Global Eco-Innovation was an added bonus. I knew I wanted to do a PhD but I didn’t necessarily want a career in academia and this was the perfect balance.

Lancaster is a thriving University and has excelled in standards during my time here. It will continue to go from strength to strength and I’m very proud to not only have a degree from here but a PhD too.

What was your favourite part of your degree and why?
During my undergraduate degree I visited Iceland as part of a field course module. I had never had this chance before and it absolutely did not disappoint. I learnt so much in such a short space of time. For me this trip was life changing, I knew from that moment onwards I wanted to study glaciology and I actively pursued this to PhD level.

During my PhD I returned to Iceland three more times for field sampling. We were based on the Southern Coast studying the Sόlheimajӧkull Glacier. Having the opportunity to study in such a beautiful country was a dream come true. I also assisted on the Iceland field course, helping guide a group of undergraduate students. This felt extremely rewarding and a chance to help inspire other students.

In addition I got to travel a great deal. My sponsor company took me to Frankfurt and Bordeaux to present my work to their international clients. I also represented Isoprime at their UK user group meeting where I presented my findings at the Museum of Natural History followed by a sunset ride on the London Eye- it was fantastic. I also got to present at the UK user meeting of the International Glaciological Society in Durham- there were so many successful glaciologists there I felt really honoured (and a tiny bit star struck!).

How do you think your time at Lancaster prepared you for what you’re currently doing?
Without having studied at Lancaster I wouldn’t have the job I have now. During my time as an undergraduate I undertook a dissertation with work placement, which really helped me to secure my industrial PhD, as I offered a unique skills set as a researcher (even though I hadn’t done a masters). Both of these experiences instilled the value of knowledge exchange and although I am still early in my career I feel I have a wealth of previous experience to draw from. This is largely a product of the excellent work done by the Enterprise and Business Partnerships team in reaching out to industry and policy makers and encouraging students to be part of this. I felt so much more prepared for the world of work, because I never lost touch with life outside academia. LEC and the University actively encourage students to go beyond a degree and gain real life experience. In particular the Lancaster Award recognises students who work, volunteer or hold active roles in the student and wider community during their degree. I think this is an excellent idea. I worked part time (14 hours per week) at Booths during my undergraduate degree and this contributed to the Lancaster Award. I feel really pleased that the University recognises this as an achievement, because it was tough doing a degree and working.

What did you enjoy most about your time at Lancaster?
I loved how social campus life is. Geography in particular felt an extremely social degree and I’ve made friends for life from my course. As a student there are loads of activities to get involved in, and there seems to be a real work hard play hard ethos. The facilities and work spaces are exceptional and academically you want for nothing, but this is also balanced by an excellent social scene and student community feel.

I loved living on campus in my third year, we had a fantastic flat in Grizedale with additional friends close by and during stressful periods such as exams or dissertation writing there always felt like there was a support network of friends around you (in addition to all the university support).

The collegiate system is fantastic- you have such a loyalty to your college and the events run by each college such as freshers week and the end of year extravs are brilliant. Each college is quirky and has its own unique character. Also getting to graduate with friends was brilliant.

PhD wise, I loved the travel but I also enjoyed being able to tutor undergraduate students and share my passions for my degree and subject area with the next generation of researchers.

As an employee now- I love the work-life balance. I feel I have an extremely rewarding and challenging role, but I also have ample time to relax and be myself. The University takes care of both its staff and students. I’m really honoured to be a member of the team here.

 

   Do you want to follow in Becca’s footsteps?
   Take a closer look at her pathway so far on LinkedIn.