Dr Stephanie Jones – I’ve been reflecting on my own experience as a girl and then a woman in science. As a child I was thrilled to receive a nurses costume for my birthday, wearing my hat and cape with pride. Family and friends asked if I wanted to be a nurse when I grew up and I answered “Yes” as I loved the idea of helping people. This idea stuck with me in the background and I discovered a love (and, dare I say it, quite a flair) for the sciences, problem solving and in particular finding out “what makes things tick”. Later, when someone happened to ask if I was interested in being a doctor rather than a nurse I was shocked. To me it seemed all nurses were female and all doctors were male, so I thought they were gender-specific names for the same role. I was swiftly corrected, and suddenly the path to being a doctor was open in front of me. Since breaking into a steady career in the sciences, I have tried my hardest to open up opportunities in this field to other women and girls. Below is a blog from one of our many work experience students, Harriet Bright, detailing her experience as a girl working towards her career in the sciences.

My name is Harriet, I am 15 years old, and I am currently in year 11 studying for my GCSEs. Ever since I was in primary education, I have been inspired by science. I joined science club when I was 9 years old, and was thrilled to be able to launch a rocket out of the school science lab window. In the senior division, the teachers would perform their so-called ‘Flash Bang’ displays for us, mesmerising us with exploding bottles and bringing excitement into the laboratory. During my GCSE years so far, I have continued this passion for all three sciences, and I think this is largely due to my school’s science department which has always encouraged everyone to enjoy these subjects. I attend a co-education school, so some may think that girls would be deterred from science, as it is a common misconception from previous generations that these are “boys’ subjects”, however I have not found this to be the case. At my school, there are more female science teachers than male, which I think inspires female students to follow a science career path. I am hoping to continue science by taking both biology and chemistry A-Level, and maybe even pursuing it at university.