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Getting to know our editorial team: Karishma Gangwani

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Getting to know our editorial team: Karishma Gangwani

Karishma is our newest editor! Thanks to her unique trajectory and communication skills, she acted as a bridge between technical and non-technical teams, including doctors, healthcare workers, scientists, clinicians, patients, engineers, and researchers. We are happy to have you!

3 Sep 2026 • 3 min read

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Getting to know our editorial team: Karishma Gangwani

Getting to know our editorial team: Karishma Gangwani

Karishma is our newest editor! Thanks to her unique trajectory and communication skills, she acted as a bridge between technical and non-technical teams, including doctors, healthcare workers, scientists, clinicians, patients, engineers, and researchers. We are happy to have you!

ecrLife editors

3 Sep 2026 • 3 min read

How Science Learns from Itself: Leveraging an Interdisciplinary Background for Meta-Science

How Science Learns from Itself: Leveraging an Interdisciplinary Background for Meta-Science

Exploring different research fields as ECRs can empower us to tackle the gaps between disciplines. Here, Daniel Kristanto shares how he leverages his multidisciplinary background in his research and discusses how funding organizations should aim to support more multidisciplinary projects.

Daniel Kristanto

20 Aug 2026 • 5 min read

A Book That Transformed How We Advise Grant Writers

A Book That Transformed How We Advise Grant Writers

A must-read to learn how to center creativity in your research

Vinita Bharat, Crystal Botham

6 Aug 2026 • 5 min read

Learning through failure, evaluated by results

Learning through failure, evaluated by results

Uncertainty is ever-present in research because we want to learn about what is not yet known. However, it is hard to embrace uncertainty when evaluations expect a constant output of results. Here, Jung Uk Kang explains how this dichotomy affects ECRs and how it can limit creativity in science.

23 Jul 2026 • 4 min read

The Invisible Skills of a Postdoc: What No One Formally Teaches

The Invisible Skills of a Postdoc: What No One Formally Teaches

A postdoc comes with challenges and uncertainties that are different from those of a PhD. Here, Vartika Sharma shares how managing expectations and building a community are key skills that can help us navigate the new uncertainties of a postdoc.

9 Jul 2026 • 5 min read

When the data doesn’t behave: learning to embrace uncertainty in research

When the data doesn’t behave: learning to embrace uncertainty in research

The journey through a PhD is not a straight line. Along the way, we face uncertainty when experiments don’t go as planned. Here, Jennifer Loudon Moxen shares her story embracing such uncertainty. While it can be frustrating at times, we can use it to learn more from our data and ask new questions.

Jennifer Loudon Moxen

25 Jun 2026 • 4 min read

Featured interview with Dr. Marina Cano and Dr. Rosa García-Periago: Women, “Failure” and Academia

Featured interview with Dr. Marina Cano and Dr. Rosa García-Periago: Women, “Failure” and Academia

Failure happens often in academia, yet we rarely talk about it. Instead, academics appear to avoid admitting failure, as conversations center around announcements of our successes. Here, we interview Dr.

ecrLife editors

21 May 2026 • 8 min read

Of the Structural Pressures That Silence Academics

Of the Structural Pressures That Silence Academics

Since their inception, universities have been regarded as lighthouses guiding the storm-tossed ship of society. These institutions, tasked with generating ideas that shape and secure the future of societies,

Ali Farrokhi, Angel Cisneros

26 Feb 2026 • 5 min read

Getting to know our editorial team: Owen Ouyang

Getting to know our editorial team: Owen Ouyang

Owen is our newest ecrLife editor! He brings in a lot of enthusiasm and new ideas that will help ECRs along their journey. Welcome to the team, Owen!

ecrLife editors

6 Nov 2025 • 3 min read

How to overcome your “academic midlife crisis” (Part 3 – Reshaping your skill sets to fit your career path(s))

How to overcome your “academic midlife crisis” (Part 3 – Reshaping your skill sets to fit your career path(s))

Finding the perfect job after your PhD is not straightforward, but doing it takes experience. You might need to look at different fields, and your goals could change over time. In part 3 of her academic midlife crisis series, Nele Haelterman describes how to get closer to your perfect job.

Nele Haelterman

15 Sep 2025 • 5 min read

Why desk rejections happen and how young researchers can avoid them: practical lessons from experience

Why desk rejections happen and how young researchers can avoid them: practical lessons from experience

Publishing our work is a critical part of an ECR’s journey. Papers are not always sent out for revision, and it can be discouraging for ECRs to face desk rejections. Here, Dr. Taddese Zerfu shares his insights on how to minimize the chances of facing a desk rejection.

17 Jul 2025 • 6 min read

Reaching Out to Senior Scientists: A Step Worth Taking

Reaching Out to Senior Scientists: A Step Worth Taking

When we start out as early career researchers, we often hesitate to reach out to senior scientists. However, they are often excited to help young scientists. Here, Owen Ouyang discusses how mentorship, collaborations, and encouragement can come from a simple email to a senior colleague.

3 Jul 2025 • 4 min read

Zigs Can Zag with Purpose: Finding My Calling in Science

Zigs Can Zag with Purpose: Finding My Calling in Science

17 Apr 2025 • 4 min read

How to overcome your “academic midlife crisis” (Part 2 - finding your path(s))

How to overcome your “academic midlife crisis” (Part 2 - finding your path(s))

Nele Haelterman

3 Apr 2025 • 5 min read

How to overcome your academic midlife crisis (Part 1 – navigating your feelings and establishing your goals)

How to overcome your academic midlife crisis (Part 1 – navigating your feelings and establishing your goals)

Nele Haelterman

6 Mar 2025 • 5 min read

How to overcome writer’s block to share your ideas

How to overcome writer’s block to share your ideas

30 Jan 2025 • 4 min read

Overcoming hardships for internationals in academia

Overcoming hardships for internationals in academia

Doing research abroad is a dream for many scientists. However, the road is not always smooth: it takes time to master the social and bureaucratic aspects. Here, Yseult, Ankita, and Ruchika explain some of these challenges and how to help our international colleagues feel at home.

Multiple authors

14 Mar 2024 • 5 min read

Things I wish I knew before entering the Academic Job Market

Things I wish I knew before entering the Academic Job Market

Looking for a job in academia can be a daunting task. Here, Meike van der Heijden talks about the highs and lows of her adventure looking for a job, as well as lessons she learnt at each stage of the process.

Meike van der Heijden

5 Oct 2023 • 11 min read

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