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Asked by 08rigbyf to Charlie, Eoin, Jemma, Julian, Steve on 15 Mar 2011.
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Jemma Ransom answered on 14 Mar 2011:
At my level (I’m still a student, just completing my doctoral studies) there really isn’t much paperwork. I do my project which is mainly lab work and at the end I submit a very large piece of work called a thesis which is like a long lab report. However as you climb the career ladder in science the level of paperwork increases. You have to apply for money to fund your research and publish your work often (at least once a year I am told). So scientists at the later stages of their careers tend to spend more time on paperwork than in the lab whereas people at the begining like myself spend more time doing experiments.
Science can be stressful. It takes a long time to hit upon experiments that work and give you reasonable results, and waiting for that is incredibly frustrating. But it’s all worth it when you discover something completely new!
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Stephen Moss answered on 14 Mar 2011:
Unfortunately there is quite a bit of paperwork these days. Some of it I don’t mind, especially when I’m writing up our work to get it published. The other paperwork isn’t so much stressful, things like filling in health and safety forms are just plain boring. But don’t get the wrong impression – the excitement of doing science still far outweighs the boring/stressful bits.
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Eoin Lettice answered on 14 Mar 2011:
Hi, thanks for your question.
It certainly requires a bit of paperwork. It’s important to write down all the steps you take in an experiment and the results you get. Then you can write up a report on the experiment and have it published in a scientific journal.
In my job, there is a fair bit of paperwork to do with students and teaching as well. Also, when we’re proposing a new set of experiments to do, we often write up some fairly lengthy reports on why we should get the money to do it!
Overall, I think there isn’t as much as in lots of other jobs and the paperwork that is there is part of what makes the fun science stuff possible. That makes it less stressful!Eoin
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Charlie Ryan answered on 14 Mar 2011:
I think it varies a lot, but for me it’s not too bad. I have to write a three page report everything, describing my progress (which at the moment is not much!), and every six months write a big report. I also have to fill in some timesheets every month, but that only takes about an hour. So I’m doing alright, but really there is a lot of variation – probably because there are so many different ways to be a scientist!
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Julian Rayner answered on 15 Mar 2011:
Some paperwork is essential. A really important part of what we do is to write papers to communicate what we have found to other scientists. This is critical – others have to know what we have done, in order to integrate those findings into their own work, and to double check us to make sure we are right. That paperwork is a fun part of science, although it can be stressful, as our peers (other scientists like us) generally get to read the papers and decide whether it gets published. If you trying to publish in a very good journal, it can be stressful waiting on the decision.
Another source of paperwork is writing grants in order to try to get money to do more science. That is less fun (although definitely essential), and also can be pretty stressful – your chances are often quite low, and your own career, and the careers of people who work for you, depend on how well you do it.
Still, that paperwork and stress are worth it for the thrill of getting to do what we do – follow your scientific instincts, work on the things that interest you, try to make a difference in the world.
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