The UK Academic system, hierarchy, Fellowships （英国的学术系统,层次结构,奖学金）.pdf

The UK Academic System: hierarchy, students, grants, fellowships and all that Geoffrey J. Barton School of Life Sciences University of Dundee Dundee, Scotland, UK. g.j.barton@dundee.ac.uk Version 1.0 Copyright © G. J. Barton, 2008. Introduction In this article, I give an overview of the career path for a scientist in UK academia, from school at 18 years old, to a senior academic research appointment. The article is aimed at those unfamiliar with the education system in the UK and with the meaning and distinction between the words “undergraduate” and “postgraduate” and job titles “Reader”, “Fellow”, “Lecturer” and “Professor”. It is intended as a guide for those who are thinking of a career in UK academic science, or have already embarked on one, so there are also quite a lot of suggestions and bits of advice for what you might think about at each stage. If you find anything here helpful, do let me know. Likewise, if you see clear errors or omissions let me know and I will try to incorporate your suggestions in later versions. The Excitement of a Scientific Career All children constantly ask the question “why?” or “how does that work?” However, this questioning often stops once you have grasped the essentials of your surroundings and have settled into a routine job. The great thing about being a scientist, particularly in academia is that you never stop asking why? Your whole daytime job is about trying to work out new things about the world around you. In “blue skies research” you are not thinking about applications of what you are doing, just being driven by the childish curiosity. It is very satisfying just to know the answer, even if it is hard to explain to a non-specialist. However, your apparently obscure original discovery might in the future lead to better health or prosperity for millions. In contrast, applied scientific research focuses on problems that can have a direct health or economic benefit for