Research Adjacent

Simon Cutler is a Business Relationship Manager at the University of Reading. Simon talks about How he turned from 'poacher to gamekeeper' and back again Why he loves meeting new people, making connections and sees everyone as a potential friend The satisfaction he gets from supporting young researchers in particular Read the full show notes on the podcast webpage Connect to Simon on LinkedIn Foll...

Alice Cann is an academic Liaison Librarian at Brunel University London. Alice talks about How academic librarians can make a big difference to research Why her role is constantly changing and evolving The confidence she gained from being part of the Research Catalyst Cohort Read the full show notes on the podcast webpage Connect to Alice on LinkedIn and Twitter Find out applying to join the Resea...

Peter is boosting research impact through creative communication. For this week's episode Sarah is joined by Peter Barker, audiovisual content creator, founder of Orinoco Communications, and host of the Research Comms podcast. Peter talks about How his career evolved via documentary-making and public engagement The satisfaction of creating impactful and boundary-pushing videos and animations Why h...

For this episode Sarah chats to Ged Hall, research impact specialist at the University of Leeds and one of the hosts of the Research Culture Uncovered podcast. Ged talks about Being a career magpie The differences between R&D in industry and academia Why we all need to be part of the research culture conversation Read the full show notes on the podcast webpage Connect to Ged on LinkedIn and Tw...

For this week's episode Sarah is joined by Anja Roeding , research manager and founder of the PRISM Network . Anja talks about Her 'wiggly, winding path' from research to research-adjacent How frustration led her to gather up all the other 'odd socks' and create the PRISM Network Why the system needs to better recognise all the people who contribute to co-creating research environments Read the fu...

Sarah's guest for this episode is Edwin Colyer, founder of the research communications and engagement agency, Scientia Scripta . Edwin talks about Copyediting for David Attenborough, writing for New Scientist and painting pictures with words The joys of having colleagues and being able to create your own workplace culture Moving from just telling impact stories to helping create them Building a bu...

For this week's episode Sarah is joined by freelance researcher developer and business coach Jenny Brady. Jenny talks about The joy and challenges of being research-adjacent when you were never a researcher The importance of playfulness and curiosity Why she wants researchers to show up authentically and connect to the value of their work Read the full show notes on the podcast webpage Connect to...

For this week's episode Sarah is joined by Matthew Partridge, cartoonist and founder of ErrantScience.com. Matthew talks about His journey from biochemistry to research-adjacent cartooning Why he is motivated to share the realities of life in the lab Why being 'terrible at art' is no barrier to creating cartoons What goes into live cartooning a 24h online chemistry poster session Read the full sho...

Boundaries (Episode 14) | Sarah is out of the office, and she means it this time! This week's episode is a holiday special all about boundaries and why it can be so hard for research-adjacent folks to really take time off. Sarah addresses Why setting and holding boundaries can be particularly challenging in the research-adjacent world Setting boundaries and taking leave as a form of quiet activism...

For this week's episode Sarah is joined by freelance science writer Melissa Hobson who specialises in marine science and conservation. Melissa talks about How learning to scuba dive prompted a career change What it's like to be a science writer without a science background Why she celebrates getting rejected Her top tips for success, which include reading and eating cake! Read the full show notes...

This week Sarah is talking to science outreach specialist Lorraine Coghill, currently Deputy Director of Science Outreach and Engagement at Durham University. Lorraine talks about Why her work is really about people rather than science Encouraging curiosity, creativity and problem solving What can happen when you put young people in charge Tackling the invisibility of public engagement professiona...

Good Work, Precarity and Contracts (Episode 11) | Sarah explores the good, the bad, and the ugly of research-adjacent job contracts This week's Research Adjacent podcast is another solo episode. Host Sarah McLusky explores some common issues around contracts in the research-adjacent sector. Sarah explores What characterises 'good work' Jargon busting - the difference between fixed term, open-ended...

This week's guest is Abraham Mamela . Based in Botswana, Abraham is a communications and engagement practitioner currently working at the Alliance for African Partnership. We talk about How Abraham learned the importance of connecting communication and engagement His time as an intern and engagement fellow at Wellcome Communicating genome research through comics Why the research ecosystem in Afric...

This week's guest is Orla Kelly , Knowledge Exchange and Innovation (KE&I) Collaboration Manager She is based at University of the West of Scotland but works across all 19 of Scotland's higher education institutions. We talk about What it means to have an entrepreneurial mindset How she moved from academia to industry and back Why it's the small things that make the biggest difference Why KE&a...

This week's podcast guest is Faye Watson , a rising star in the engagement world. Faye has recently joined at the College of Medical and Veterinary Medicine at the University of Edinburgh as their Public Engagement with Research Manager. We talk about Her rapid rise through the public engagement ranks Why she quit her PhD to become research-adjacent Working in virus research engagement during COVI...

For episode 7 of Research Adjacent my guest is (we think) the UK's only full-time university-based Creative Facilitator, Mary Robson. Mary works at the Institute for Medical Humanities at Durham University. We talk about What creative facilitation is and how it helps in research Creating meaningful connections between diverse groups Holding space for different experiences and opinions Challenging...

Getting a research-adjacent job (Episode 6) | Sarah shares some advice for finding and landing your next (or first) research-adjacent job Short-term contracts and lack of promotion opportunities mean that research-adjacent professionals are often hunting from their next job. While Sarah can't guarantee you'll land that job, she does have some advice to help you improve your chances including: Wher...

Duncan Yellowlees, Presentation Skills Trainer (Episode 5) | Duncan talks about telling stories, building confidence and doing things differently For episode 5 of Research Adjacent my guest is freelance presentation skills trainer Duncan Yellowlees. Duncan trains researchers to communicate better, helping them tell stories about their work, connect with different audiences, and collaborate more ef...

For episode 4 of Research Adjacent I chat with Nina Ruddle. Nina leads the Civic Mission Partnership Strategy at Wrexham Glyndwr University. We talk about How growing up in North Wales led to a passion for social and economic regeneration The importance of showing up with curiosity and humility to build genuine, collaborative relationships Why her deep local knowledge and public sector experience...

For episode 3 of Research Adjacent I chat with Colin Wilkinson, a public involvement specialist, about the good, bad and ugly of health research involvement. We talk about Colin's journey from steel chemist to public involvement specialist His passion for improving science and research through engagement and involvement His recent contributions towards the Shared Commitment to Public Involvement A...

For this episode of Research Adjacent I chat with Kirsty Ross, a public engagement and culture change professional with not one, but currently three jobs at the Universities of St Andrews and Strathclyde! In this episode we talk about How she got into working in public engagement The challenges of juggling multiple jobs, short term contracts and ADHD Projects she is proud of including Cell Block S...

Introduction to Research Adjacent (Episode 1) | Sarah introduces herself, the story behind the podcast, and previews upcoming episodes It's time! Research Adjacent has been brewing for a couple of months now and I'm so excited to share the first episode with you. Most episodes will be an interview with a brilliant research-adjacent professional, but for today it's just me. I share the story behind...

Are you ready to hear stories and strategies to help you thrive in a research-adjacent career? Then you're in the right place! Hosted by Sarah McLusky New episodes fortnightly on a Tuesday Fill out the research-adjacent quiz for episode suggestions Follow Research Adjacent on LinkedIn Instagram and BlueSky Email a comment, question or suggestion Leave Sarah a voice message Mentioned in this episod...