After spending almost every year of our early lives studying, jumping right into your first chemistry job can seem scary, stressful, or even terrifying for some!
This said not all people actually have the luck of being able to study through college without working on a part-time job. This highly depends on the country you are living in, or on the wealth of your family.
I was one of those lucky guys. This approach lets you focus on simply getting your degree(s), which is nice. But there’s always the downside of not having any real work experience. That’s why you should start looking into building a career. Especially when you are close to graduation.
In this post I wanted to share the story on how I got my first research internship. And how this led me to another one, and then to my PhD without even having to interview.
Disclaimer: My career is purely academic, but I will try and finish the article with several tips that can help you land into your first job, either in industry or academia.
Getting Your First Working Experience
Getting research or industrial experience is key for building up a career in chemistry. This is clear. But is not equally easy in every part of the world.
But in any case, working as an undergraduate in something related to chemistry, will definitely help you. Always. It’s not just about having something to put in your CV. It will help you greatly in your transition from being a student to working full time.
If you can combine studying chemistry with working on you first chemistry job, you are off to a great start of your career!
