31 Aug Supporting Professional Development: Ecology consultancy work experience
In August student Vicky Jamieson joined the Derbyshire team for two weeks of ecological consultancy work experience. Vicky, who is currently studying Ecology and Conservation at Lancaster University, was eager to get an insight into what working as an ecologist entails and to gain experience in bat and botanical surveys which are of particular interest to her.
Vicky spent two weeks working alongside experienced ecologists assisting on water vole surveys, collecting invertebrate pitfall traps, setting up trail cameras for badger monitoring and conducting botanical surveys at a local quarry. As well as daytime surveys, Vicky was able join a team of surveyors carrying out bat emergence surveys and a bat transect.
Vicky commented “This experience was really valuable, and I felt that I got a glimpse into the broad range of work of an ecologist. I’m grateful to everyone at BSG, as they were all so friendly and took time to explain the concepts behind what they were doing.”
Everyone in the Hathersage team enjoyed having Vicky and we wish her all the best in her final year at University.
If you interested in a career in ecology we have written an article on what we are looking for in early career ecologists, including the skills you could develop to help set yourself apart: What do we look for in Graduate and Early Career Ecologists?