RULES OF THE LAB
- Take and keep good notes/lab-books. Maintain your lab-book and keep it organised and up to date. Reproducing/sharing/explaining experiments/simulations are key for good science.
- You are responsible for setting up meetings with more senior lab mates & supervisors.
- You are responsible for asking the supervisor or senior member when you need something (e.g. reagent for experiment or computational resource). Supervisors cannot read minds...yet!
- Always start from the assumption that everyone is very busy and s/he is doing her/his best.
- Rember to keep track of where you go and when for timesheets.
- Your are part of a team and teams work well if they are "synched".
TIPS FOR A SUCCESSFUL PhD
- ASK QUESTIONS. It's OK not to know things. When you find yourself to be the least knowledgeable in the room, it is the right time/chance to learn something!
- Help each other (e.g. share codes/data/knowledge/experience)
- Be proactive (find stimuli and motivation by yourself, don't wait for others to tell you what to do)
- Be brave & throw yourself into learning new techniques & tools. Don't be afraid to step out of your comfort zone! See point 1, it's OK not to know things!
- Figure out when to quit things & learn when to let go. Set general timelines & if things are not working by a certain point decide on alternative options. Time flies!
- Organise. Make lists, think about what you have done & where you are going, keep an eye on the big picture. See OKRs below. Keep half-day a week to plan your next week in detail.
- Take good care of yourself both physically & mentally. Take breaks, use them well.
- Be friendly, grateful, courteous, professional with the support staff, xwtechnicians, janitors, etc.
- Going to conferences is SUPER(!) important. You should not wait your supervisor to tell you to go to a conference but it should come from you!
- giving presentations (whether posters or talks) is invaluable practice. If unsure which meetings are worth going just ask around!!
- Figure out how to get the help you need from your lab mates & supervisor. Everyone has his/her own strengths; identify them and use them at your advantage.
- Challenge status quo (why should it be like this, when it could be better?)
- Spead the love for science and for what you do (if something excites you, it may well excite someone else; let everyone know!)
- Your project is yours! Its success means your success. You should take your time to choose it well at the start and you may consider changing it en route. Seek help and talk to more senior lab mates.
- Apply for stuff (mini travel grants, bursaries, ...). Be involved with scientific communities. IOP and BBPS are good starting points!
OKRs
"Objectives and key results" is a way to manage large groups/companies. The idea is to have 1 clear objective and a number (3-5) of key practical results building up to the objective per working cycle (say 1 month). If all key results are met then the objective can be considered achieved.
Example1:
Objective (to reach in a month):
- make myself familiar with literature on the field
Key results:
- read 2 papers a day for the next 2 weeks
- prepare a presentation summarising 5 key papers for the next group meeting
- write a 6 pages report on the state of the art of the field by end of the month
Example2:
Objective (to reach in a month):
- Develop new code to simulate XX
Key results:
- Read 5 most recent papers on simlar simulations in week 1
- write a rough code and test it on small systems in week 1
- polish the code and make it more efficient in weeks 2-3
- run it on larger systems in weeks 2-3
- week 4: polish the code, write instructions, put it on github
Example3:
Objective (to reach in a month):
Key results:
- write introduction, focusing on motivations and key messages by week 1
- write rough draft and outline of figures in weeks 1-2
- make almost final figures in weeks 2-3
- week 4 polish the draft
USEFUL SOFTWARE
- Slack: for intra-lab communications and exchange of information
- VMD: for visualisation
- OneNote for e-notes and e-lab-books
USEFUL POINTS OF CONTACT
Danielle.Jeffery@ed.ac.uk
Tracy.Brown@ed.ac.uk
admin-hr@ph.ed.ac.uk
For IT questions/problems/issues
sopa-helpdesk@ed.ac.uk
For finance questions (apply for grants/fellowships etc)
grants@ph.ed.ac.uk
For finance questions (expenses/claims/purchases/etc)
Aleta.Graham@ed.ac.uk
sopa.accounts@ed.ac.uk
Microscopes/imaging
Jochen Artl - j.arlt@ed.ac.uk