28 Aug 2016

Kevin Loo skipped two grades in school, started uni when he was only 16 and now, astoundingly, has a Doctorate in Physics at age 26. He is also the Co-Founder of Future Perfect magazine because ya gotta have a little side project right?

He also happens to be unemployed.

Kev loves cafes (his cafe review insta: @yourcafesucks) and taking photos of food. At the end of a working day, he’ll generally be reading or watching some form of crime series that ended years ago. Otherwise, you can find him at a concert, out with mates catching up over a bevvie or some form of Asian food!

We are stoked at the opportunity to talk to this master of all trades, and, as you can see below, he’s pretty chill and humble about what he spent a lot of time doing as a Researcher. He’s definitely encouraged me to get off my arse and get shit done.

 

1. What did an average day ‘in the office’ as a Researcher look like? What did you do?

 

My work was as a research scientist – applied physics. Unlike Iron Man’s lab, there are no fancy lasers or robots to assist me. A lot of my work involves sitting in front of a computer, crunching numbers or developing software to help me crunch those numbers. I did have the occasional experiment to perform, which involved X-raying certain samples or working with radioactive sources…which would then lead to more number crunching!

2. What did you do to get where you are?

I studied at the University of Wollongong for 10 years! I completed my bachelor degree in medical radiation physics and went on to honours, which went straight to PhD. Halfway through my PhD, I got a job in the Czech Republic as a researcher. I spent 3 years there at the Czech Technical University, before I finally completed my PhD at the end of 2015. A long journey, but worth it in the end!

3. What did you love about your job?

If you like problem solving and working independently, research is a great path! You’re left to your own devices a lot of the time and you get to work on some pretty groundbreaking stuff. It is very hard work though. Also, there is plenty of opportunity to travel and collaborate internationally. If you work hard and play your cards correctly, you can go to conferences around the world, or work with other universities and institutes. A life-changing opportunity to say the least!

4. What was the most challenging component of your job?

The day-to-day grind is indeed a grind. You really need to be self-motivated and passionate about your area of expertise. Of course, after 4, 5 or even 6 years of working on the same thing, that is hard to maintain! Surrounding yourself with understanding peers and colleagues is vital to that too.

5. Is the industry competitive, if so why and how did you navigate it?

Yes. Research is all about being the first to publish or the first to find those new results. You have to find that balance between focussing on your own work, while also being aware of what else is going on around the world in your field. There’s no use of you working on something for years only to find out someone else is doing the same thing, only better. You have to keep involved with your colleagues and talk to your professors about that sort of thing.

6. What are some common misconceptions about your job?

That it’s for ‘nerds’ or for those who just want to study forever. The people I’ve met in research come from a wide variety of backgrounds but all know how to have a really good time in life! That work-life balance is really important to have, and I think because of the intense nature of research life, we tend to compensate on the other end of things too. Whether it be hiking, travelling, sports, dancing or whatever, everyone has their side interest too.

Also, doing a PhD doesn’t mean you’re stuck in uni forever. It opens up many other doors in different career paths.

7. Yeah, but, you’re unemployed…. what now?

I just finished my first research contract and am using my time off to restrategise my career. You can always use your PHD to branch out into other fields, whether you want to go into pharmaceuticals, biotech or even tech start ups and finance. A growing number of academics are switching over to industry. There is value to a research degree in that you develop critical analytical skills and teamwork skills too. Don’t think that just because you did one field of study you’re locked into that! Employers don’t just value what you learn, but also the way you learn and how you think. A university education demonstrates you can do that!

8. What would you tell your 18-year-old self?

You’re in for a crazy ride kid!
(Actually, I’d probably tell him to go to art school hahaha. lol jkz)