Credit: Andrew Thoesen/andrewthoesen.com
Tips to help you promote your research, attract recruits, and share resources.
May 11, 2020
For some researchers, self-isolation in the COVID-19 pandemic provides a unique opportunity to build and launch a personal scholarly website.
It’s a relatively small time investment that can pay off in terms of career advancement, giving researchers more control over how their research is presented. online experience. It can also help researchers attract PhD students, share resources with the scientific community, and promote their work to the general public.
It is also an important asset for researchers thinking of starting a career. standalone.
But it can be hard to know where to start.
Generic developers like Squarespace and Wix provide ready-to-use templates and web analytics tools for a monthly fee. There are also resources specifically geared toward scientists, such as ScienceSites, Owlstown, and Academic Web Pages, which provide support with website design, content development, and maintenance for those with little or no experience building sites.
Before contracting a service of this type, researchers must plan the approach of their website. It will likely take 2-4 weeks to build (depending on other demands), and they should also set aside time to update it when needed, once it’s released.
To Andrew Thoesen, Postdoctoral Researcher at Bio-inspired by the Arizona State University Healthcare and Robotics Technology Laboratory (whose home page is seen above), their website has been invaluable.
“Whether I communicate my work quickly in lectures via hosted videos, or including it to showcase my scope and work for career advancement, has proven useful from the day I built it,” says Thoesen.
“Having the equivalent graphic of a CV available to me through my phone, many website builders optimize for mobile viewing now: it enhances any elevator pitch I need to make.It also works as a great confidence booster, so [I can] quickly review your big successes”.
Nature Index spoke to three researchers who shared their website – making experiences and top tips on getting started.
Ritu Ra male, postdoctoral fellow, chemical engineering
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts Academic website: rituraman.com
My motivation: I started my website in the second year of graduate school. I bought the domain RituRaman.com and noticed that people in my profession were searching for my name on Google. I thought I could let them check out multiple random link pages or give them a well curated resource. That’s when I decided to get a website right.
The challenge: I was intimidated by web design because I’m more of a “verbal” than a “visual” person. . After evaluating a few [platform] options, I chose WordPress, because it’s essentially the same as Microsoft Word, in terms of how you use it to put words and images on a page. I use a standard template and fill it with photos and videos that were professionally taken during my career.
What I do with it: My website has become a dynamic resume. I see it as a unique showcase of myself, professionally. In addition to using it to highlight my research and teaching accomplishments, my website also features my outreach activities that focus on advancing women and underrepresented minorities in STEM.
Almost every week, I receive some emails from young scientists saying how my videos or blogs have helped them navigate something difficult. This makes me feel like my website is worth spending time on.
Top Tip: Be sure to link your social media accounts (Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, and Instagram) to your website. This is important for search engine page rank optimization (SEO) to increase your visibility.
James Dahlman, Assistant Professor, Biomedical Engineering
Institute of Technology from Georgia, Atlanta, Georgia Academic website: dahlmanlab.org
My motivation: I created my website several months before I started my lab at Georgia Tech. I reasoned that the success of my career will depend on recruiting good students. To achieve that goal, students needed to know that I exist.
The challenge: The website was a challenge to set up, as I wanted a platform that was informative, without creating a messy interface. Even now, it still takes a lot of effort to update it with new information, and my students are supporting me with that.
What I do with it: My website has enabled recruiting great students and postdocs.I also have a section called “Resources” for outside labs to access computational code we’ve created to analyze large data sets. Several labs had been emailing me to access our codes, so I thought it would be easier to put it online to share with the scientific community.
Top tip: An image says more than a thousand words. An effective website interface should contain interesting images to visually educate your visitors.
Sharda Umanath, Assistant Professor, Psychological Science
Claremont Mckenna College, Claremont, California Academic website: umanathlab.com
My motivation: I wanted to have control over my web presence so people would know more about me and my research .
The challenge: I wanted my website to present information in an accessible and professional way, but I had little experience creating one, so I hired ScienceSites to design and maintain my Web site. website. The company has a clear idea of what researchers need and makes excellent suggestions.
What I do with it: In addition to showcasing my research, my website acts as a [tool ] recruitment. for undergraduate research fellows and study participants. Having a polished online presence also helps me recruit members of the community who might be interested in participating in my research.
I also wanted to give my undergraduate research assistants a sense of legitimacy and enthusiasm. showing them on my website. .
Top Tip: Funding permitting, seek professional help to update your website to create lasting impressions and impact.
.