Category: Research Staff

What my robot taught me about being human

by Dipankar Bhattacharya, Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellow, Dyson School of Engineering

I am Dipankar Bhattacharya, a Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellow at Imperial’s Dyson School of Design Engineering. On the evening of Imperial Lates, I sat on a public panel with Thrishantha Nanayakkara (Thrish), Professor of Robotics in the Dyson School and Director of the Morph Lab, and my colleague Chris Kalogroulis, hosted by Rachel Wheeley. Our question sounded simple: What has building a robot taught you about being human? Even with today’s most advanced machines, most of us would still hesitate to let a robot hold a hamster or gently examine a patient.

Figuring Out ‘What’s Next?’: Academic Women Association Intentional Careers Workshop Helps Researchers Plan Their Next Career Steps

by Alice Francis, Gemma Fisher and Lee Sykes

The Academic Women’s Association (AWA) joined forces with the Laboratory of Medical Sciences (LMS) to host the first event of the year: an Intentional Careers workshop led by award-winning career coach, author and STEM scientist Dr Hannah Roberts on 2nd March 2026.

The motivation for the workshop came from findings in the 2025 LMS Athena survey, which highlighted that a higher proportion of women reported feeling uncertain about their next career steps compared with men. The event aimed to create space for reflection and provide practical strategies to help researchers approach career decisions with greater clarity and intention.

Mindful Scientific Writing Workshop

by Vivienne Groner, Research Associate in Microclimate Modelling, Department of Life Sciences 

Writing sits at the heart of academic life. It is how we shape ideas, apply for funding, progress in our careers, and share our work with the world. Yet for many of us, writing feels heavy – something to squeeze in between experiments, meetings, and deadlines. It is rarely taught as a skill to be practised mindfully or sustainably; more often, it is something we dread, delay, or approach under pressure. In an increasingly competitive academic environment, writing can all too easily become a source of stress, burnout, and self-doubt.

IGHI PhD Christmas Social 2025

by Tricia Tay, Clinical Research Fellow, Department of Surgery & Cancer

We would like to thank Early Career Researcher Institute for funding our Christmas social. The original plan was to a research presentation where we provide updates of our PhDs in the morning to the group followed by lunch in a nearby café. We applied for funding for the lunch. However, our supervisor cancelled the research meeting after we had obtained funding.

Our team went ahead with the lunch and shared informally updates of our PhDs and lives in 2025. Our team of 18 PhD and Clinical Research Fellows work across various campuses including White City, St Mary’s and South Kensington.

DoID Postdoc & Fellows Symposium 2025: science, fun and career development

by Maria Papangeli, Research Associate, Department of Infectious Disease

The first Postdoc and Fellows Symposium took place on Friday 14th of November 2025 at the White city campus. The initiative was organised by the postdoctoral representatives (David Carreno, Claire Dunican, Hannah Klim, Maria Papangeli, Katia Ribeiro de Jesus, Magdalena Szczesna) and champion (Alex McCarthy) of the Department of Infectious Disease (DoID), and it aimed to bring together postdocs and fellows from the 6 sections. It was a hugely successful event with great turnout that led to networking, showcasing of cutting-edge research, enjoying lunch with great views from the 12th floor of the Uren building and bringing out the competitive side of the participants with a team building quiz.

Student seminar series at the Abdus Salam Centre for Theoretical Physics

By Jaeha Park & Elias Van den Driessche, Department of Physics

The student seminar series is designed to give PhD students at the Abdus Salam Centre for Theoretical Physics an opportunity to present their ongoing research. As opposed to other seminars organised in the group, student seminars are organised in an accessible and informal setting. This gives an opportunity for PhD students and early-career postdocs to gain valuable experience in scientific communication, but also for MSc students and early-year PhD students to be exposed to the range of topics explored within the group.

The goal of the student seminars is far beyond individual talks.

ECRI Awards and Celebration 2025

The Early Career Researcher Institute is delighted to share the highlights from this year’s ECRI Awards and Celebration, held on Tuesday 16 September 2025 at Eastside!

This event, held during Postdoc Appreciation Week, celebrated the outstanding contributions of Imperial’s postdocs and fellows, recognising their vital role in fostering a positive and supportive research environment. The celebration included a lunch, the ECRI Awards ceremony and an opportunity to network with colleagues from across Imperial.

Award Winners

Creating a Positive Research Environment Award

  • Zhenzhu Li – Department of Materials
  • Lyes Kahouadji – Department of Chemical Engineering

Supporting Research Staff and Students Award

  • Fabio De Sousa Ribeiro – Department of Computing

Postdoc and Fellows Reps Team Award

  • Department of Life Sciences: Julia Sanchez Garrido, Alex Cocker, Satya Prakash, Anna Bajur, Hannah Jagoe, Smitha Maretvadakethope, Rahwa Osman, Valentina Carannante, Jessica Williams and Katie Willis

Postdoc and Fellows Champions Award

  • Stella Pedrazzini – Department of Materials

The ECRI team would like to extend their congratulations to all winners, finalists and nominees – all of whom have had a positive impact on those around them and the research culture at Imperial.