Duncan Parker PhD
Postgraduate student
Hi, I'm Duncan Parker and I studied PhD within Chemistry at the University of Southampton.
Obviously the change from undergraduate study to postgraduate is huge; there is a passion for a topic as well as personal motivation to succeed, an ability to direct exactly what you’re researching and far greater opportunities for personal and professional development.
I previously undertook my Masters’ at Southampton and had contemplated doing a PhD elsewhere, however knowing my supervisor and being aware of the variety of research that occurs within the department enticed me back to stay a few more years. And now I am researching the reaction networks of Belousov-Zhabotinsky reactions under different conditions and reduced dimensionality. This will enable a deeper understanding of how the reactions, networks and intracellular environment govern our biological processes.
Obviously the change from undergraduate study to postgraduate is huge; there is a passion for a topic as well as personal motivation to succeed, an ability to direct exactly what you’re researching and far greater opportunities for personal and professional development. For those reasons alone I would recommend continuing into postgraduate study.
Nonetheless there are always the days where things don’t work and nothing seems to make sense so when choosing further study it is important that it is something that you can be passionate about. Talk to prospective supervisors, read around the topic more and talk to your friends about the area.
Overall studying here has been a great experience, the department and University are incredibly friendly and instil a passion for your work. The University runs regular courses for professional development whether it is in terms of presentation, teaching or outreach skills and this is further supported by the Students’ Union.
Apart from doing my PhD I have also been involved with the Chemistry Society, Union Films (the student cinema) and the Performing Arts societies. So while very busy at work, it is possible to be equally busy away from it. Furthermore Southampton is a lovely place with numerous parks, a river that cuts through many of the major residential areas, a variety of shops and the ability to get to any other major cities on the south coast easily.
After so long in Southampton it will be a shame to go, and when I do it will likely be a move away from academia to a job where I can utilise all of the skills and experiences gathered over my time here.