Meet our Post-Doctoral Fellows
Hear directly from current and former Post-Doctoral Fellows about their research, experiences and career journeys.
Dr Dhrati Vimal Pangia
Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of Medical Microbiology, Universitätsmedizin Essen, Germany
Turning research experience into a career toolkit
For Dhrati Vimal Pangia, the Level 9 Professional Diploma in Researcher Development helped transform skills developed through research into a broader and more structured professional toolkit.
Dhrati is now a Postdoctoral Researcher in the Medical Microbiology Department at University Hospital Essen, Germany, where her responsibilities include data analysis, coordinating manuscript preparation and managing timelines across projects.
Project management has been particularly valuable. During recruitment for her current position, Dhrati was asked how she would manage competing deadlines across multiple projects. Rather than relying solely on previous experience, she was able to draw on specific frameworks learned through the programme, allowing her to provide a more structured and confident response.
The programme also strengthened her communication, leadership and self-awareness. Dhrati now takes a more intentional approach to mentoring and delegation and has become more confident networking and approaching senior researchers, viewing these interactions as opportunities to learn and develop collaborations.
“It’s a programme that turns the technical skills you built during your PhD into a genuine career toolkit.”
Dhrati encourages future participants to make the most of opportunities to strengthen skills such as project management, communication, leadership and networking, and to think about how these can be applied across different roles and sectors.
For Dhrati, learning to recognise and articulate these skills has been particularly valuable.