My first professional encounter with Pharmacology Matters was when I was invited to contribute an article to a GPCR-themed edition of the magazine as an early career researcher (ECR) during my postdoctoral research period at University of Bristol. Back in 2013, the Editor in Chief (EiC) was Tim Atkinson, leading an excellent team of six editorial board members. The personalised approach of the editorial process and the support, from the handling editor from article drafting to final publication, made the experience memorable. The following year, an editorial board position became available under the new EiC leadership of Felicity Gavins, and I was encouraged by Graeme Henderson to apply to gain editorial experience and get more involved in the Society. Little did I know that when I joined the editorial board in 2014, I would go on to lead the editorial board as EiC in 2017 when Felicity’s term came to an end.
There have been so many highlights during my time at the magazine, but many of the notable articles for me have been where authors have shared unique insights into their career path and their interests beyond pharmacology. Felicity introduced a pharmacologist ‘hobby’ article category during her term and the team commissioned articles from BPS members who were willing to share aspects of their lives outside of science. These articles where particularly impactful when you consider that the stereotypical life of a scientist is often one negatively portraying work-life balance. One of my favourite hobby articles was written by the late Richard Green who, in addition to his academic role as Honorary Professor of Neuropharmacology at Nottingham University, was appointed as a volunteer lock-keeper on the River Trent. It was interesting to read about the different talents and wider interests of the different BPS members published as part of the hobby article series, from talented musicians to creative members with expertise in making stained glass windows. I encourage you to look up the series, it may give you some inspiration for new hobbies! Over the years, this series evolved into ‘Pharmacologist in the Phrame’, which is another one of my favourite magazine features that captures the career pathways of members. This involves interviews conducted by senior editorial board member Aisah Aubdool, with a mixture of questions designed to illustrate diversity in career tracks and the different routes members have taken along the way. If you are interested in sharing your career experiences as part of this series, then we would love to hear from you so please get in touch.
It goes without saying that the magazine covers vast topics to effectively cater for basic, clinical, and industry-facing pharmacology audiences interested in research, teaching, policy, and engagement areas of the Society. However, my final highlight from my editorial term has to be the introduction of our annual junior and early career pharmacology writing competitions. This has been an important mechanism to engage younger audiences who may be interested in pursuing a degree or career in pharmacology. With every competition entry we receive, we gain valuable insight into the scientific topics that are of high interest to the next generation scientist. One year we received over 130 entries for the junior writing competition. The skill amongst the writers was clear and each submission covered diverse topics of science which made it extremely challenging for the panel to decide on the final winning article. The same can be said for our ECR entries. In fact, many of the previous winners of our ECR writing competition have subsequently joined the editorial board to further develop their scientific writing skills, gain editorial experience and then go on to support other authors with their article submissions to the magazine. We recognise and appreciate the valuable contribution that our ECR prize winners have made. This has provided us with a great talent pipeline to support the editorial board and help to shape the magazine and its vision.
Overall, it has been a phenomenal experience, and many of the developments of the magazine over the past five years has been due to the dedication of staff at the Society working committedly with the growing editorial team. Our board is now comprised of over 18 members representing all career stages and expertise, ranging from Undergraduate to Professor, with strong representation from the early career pharmacologist advisory group (ECPAG). In 2021 Steve Tucker was appointed deputy EiC, and will take over the EiC leadership role from January 2023 with the support of Halima Amer as his new deputy EiC. We can also look forward to seeing more from Aisah Aubdool when she takes on her new role as the Senior Editor for the magazine.
The Society magazine has always played an important role in career development through the different ways it promotes opportunities for its members to engage and get involved and be part of the pharmacology editorial community. When I reflect upon my own experience being part of the magazine board, progressing from ECR board member to leading the team, I am a strong believer in paying it forward. There are limited editorial opportunities for those who are interested in developing these critical skills early in their career. I am confident that the inclusive approach the editorial team has taken to ensure representation across the different career stages will continue to flourish and I am excited to see the next chapter for the magazine with the new leadership team.
Comments
If you are a British Pharmacological Society member, please
sign in to post comments.