This is a special double episode. First up Sarah meets David Mendes, aka Papa PhD, medical writer/translator and host of the Beyond the Thesis podcast. Then the tables are turned and David interviews Sarah for the Beyond the Thesis podcast.

Sarah and David talk about

• How networking led to both the career and podcast he has now
• The origin story of the Papa PhD podcast
• Why creating the podcast has helped him feel more confident
• The emotional and practical challenges of the post-PhD journey

Then David and Sarah have a conversation about

• How Sarah transitioned from research to research-adjacent post-PhD
• Advocating for research-adjacent professionals
• Research-adjacent jobs and where to find them
• Why PhD graduates who want to become research-adjacent need to reframe both their skills and their expectations

Find out more

• Read the transcript on the podcast website
• Connect to David on LinkedIn
• Visit the Papa PhD podcast website
• Follow the Papa PhD podcast on Instagram or X
• Connect to Sarah on LinkedIn

About Research Adjacent

• Fill out the research-adjacent careers quiz
• Sign up to the Research Adjacent newsletter
• Follow Research Adjacent on LinkedIn Instagram and BlueSky
• Email a comment, question or suggestion
• Leave Sarah a voice message

Mentioned in this episode:

Helping you have conversations that move research forwards

When she's not hosting Research Adjacent, Sarah McLusky organises, facilitates and trains people to run events, workshops and meetings that get people talking about research. To find out more about working with Sarah and to book a free call go to https://sarahmclusky.com/