Twelve PhD students of CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad, have started a new initiative of interacting with undergraduate and post-graduate students belonging to different colleges in the city to raise awareness about career opportunities and several scholarships available for PhD programmes. The first meeting with post-graduate students at Loyola Academy, Alwal, was held on April 7.
“The initiative is on a pilot scale right now, involving 12 PhD students. We have already visited two colleges. We will be adding more students and targeting more colleges in the days to come. We intend holding at least one meeting each month,” says Santosh Kumar Kuncha, a PhD student at CCMB. “We also explain the science being done at CCMB.”
The students intend to interact with students not only in basic sciences, but also in vocational courses to explain how science is interdisciplinary and requires different perspectives and skills to excel. The students also intend involving CCMB scientists in the outreach programme. There are plans to initiate other outreach programmes with general public to keep them updated of scientific advances and their implications on our understanding of life and universe.
“Graduate students of CCMB start a new initiative of regularly visiting local colleges in Hyderabad, interacting with science enthusiasts, discussing the ever expanding frontiers of science and different successful career paths that one can pursue with a rigorous training in science. If you feel your college would like to have a visit from CCMB students as well, leave us a note,” reads a post on CCMB Facebook page. Interested colleges in Hyderabad can also send an email to the following address: students@ccmb.res.in
