On Saturday, November 6, 2021, Hokkaido University Ambitious Leader Development Program 7th batch (hereafter, ALP students) exhibited at Science Agora 2021 and held an online event titled "I want to talk about future doctors." . The aim is to think about the diversifying career paths of doctoral students, and to create a prosperous society where people can pursue research activities with hope. . In addition to ALP students, guests with various backgrounds joined to create a place for dialogue with Zoom participants.
Discussions by diverse graduate students and current researchers
In addition to ALP students, Reina+World, who is active as a science communicator while enrolled in the doctoral program at the University of Tokyo, Shodai Tsukamoto, who completed the doctoral program at the University of Chicago and is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow at Harvard University, After graduating from Hokkaido University, Kotaro Osawa completed a master's program at the Graduate School of Tokyo Gakugei University and is currently continuing his research at the Department of Science and Technology Communication at Hokkaido University Science. In Hokkaido UniversityVice President, "DX Doctoral Fellowship is a support program for doctoral students. Professor Koichiro Ishimori, who is in charge of the project, participated in the discussion on three themes. About 40 online participants, including Mr. Eisuke Enoki, who continues to write on the theme of the careers of young researchers, and members of the media, participated in discussions from various perspectives.
The speakers (honorific titles omitted) are the following eight people.
・Reina+World（レイナ+ワールド）：東京大学大学院 理学系研究科博士課程学生。分子生物学を専攻。社会と科学を繋ぐシンガーソングライター、モデルとしての活動を行う。
・塚本 翔大：ハーバード大学博士研究員。専門は有機合成化学。シカゴ大学博士課程修了。
・大澤 康太郎：北海道大学理学院科学技術コミュニケーション講座博士後期課程1年。
・碓井 拓哉：北海道大学生命科学院生命科学専攻博士前期課程2年／ALP7期生。専門は構造生物学、分子生物学。自己紹介記事 : Ph. Dreams「土佐の国より来た大学院生」
・大野 優：北海道大学理学院数学専攻博士前期課程2年／ALP7期生。専攻は幾何学。自己紹介記事 : Ph. Dreams「大学院で総合的な力を身につけたい」
・佐藤 丈生：北海道大学生命科学院生命科学専攻博士前期課程2年／ALP7期生。専門分野は生殖生物学、分子生物学。自己紹介記事 : Ph. Dreams「理系大学院生 × 落語」
・野口 真司：北海道大学大学院総合化学院博士前期課程2年／ALP７期生。専門は無機材料化学。自己紹介記事 : Ph. Dreams「心身の健康という礎」
・石森 浩一郎：北海道大学理学研究院教授／北海道大学副学長／Ph.Discoverプロジェクト代表／ALPコーディネーター
To create a prosperous society where research activities can be carried out with hope
Mr. Shinji Noguchi, the facilitator, presented the contents of this project and the theme of Science Agora 2021 at the beginning as follows.
Mr. Noguchi:
This event provides a forum for dialogue that will trigger changes in society as a whole, including universities and companies, in order to create a society where researchers can conduct research with hope, even as the environment surrounding doctors is changing. I planned to try Through dialogues with graduate students, young researchers, university officials, and corporate researchers, we will consider the future of the doctorate.
The theme of this year's Science Agora is "Dialogue for Life". While taking up the opinions of the participants on Zoom and YouTube, we will discuss how the future of the doctor will be better through dialogue with the participants.
A doctoral program is the most research-intensive in my life
After the speaker introduced himself, the discussion started with Reina+World's music as a cue. Here are some of them.
Mr. Ohno commented that he was worried about whether he would be able to continue his research financially because he would have to conduct research on his own in the doctoral program, which would make him feel lonely. While the speakers expressed sympathy for that opinion, Reina+World and Professor Ishimori introduced the following opinions.
Reina+World:
Of course, it is difficult to balance research in the doctoral course and talent activities, but I am able to do it because I have the belief that I want to create a point of contact between science and society. In the laboratory, I work as a team, so I'm not lonely, but I need to communicate to share information about progress, so I'm always using my head. I think there are also differences depending on the research field.
Professor Ishimori:
There is a tendency to glorify the past, but even with that in mind, I look back on my doctoral course as the most fulfilling period of my career as a researcher, where I was able to focus on my research. What I would like to tell you is that you shouldn't be confined to your laboratory, but rather get in touch with other fields and have a variety of experiences. You can also try studying abroad. Human beings may be lonely by nature, but I think that once you go on to a doctoral course, you will lose the negative feeling of being alone. The economic aspect of doctoral course students is taken very seriously by the government. I've just finally started trying to help.
So that we can do our best even during the corona crisis
Mr. Usui, who was able to continue his research activities without being greatly affected by the corona disaster, said, "On-demand classes are easy to balance with experiments, and I realized the goodness of online."
On the other hand, Mr. Osawa, who is engaged in social science research, says that although online is certainly convenient, qualitative research has become difficult. It is said that "real communication" is important in research that actually visits remote islands and conducts interviews while walking.
What is the ideal doctoral course that young pioneers want?
Reina+World:
I think that the current doctoral course pays less for effort. It is also a problem that there are few transmissions from academia. Furthermore, dissemination of research activities may lead to criticism. As a result, the research field has become a closed environment. It's good that results are expected, but I don't think it's a good idea to place too much emphasis on them and to look at things like marriage and child rearing in a harsh light. It is necessary to eliminate the gap in recognition between researchers and doctoral personnel and those who are not, and to play a role as a bridge between research institutes and society.
Mr. Tsukamoto:
I spent my master's degree in Japan. Compared to Japan, European and American universities have better facilities and environments, it is easier to communicate with people in different fields, and it is easier to engage in various research. Also, there is no need to worry about living expenses or research expenses. The university will help you with everything. On the other hand, the economic burden of education in Japan is heavy, so if the support measures are expanded, I think the number of people aiming for a doctoral course will increase.
To future doctors
We received so many opinions on the themes we had prepared that we couldn't discuss them all within the time allotted. During the free talk after the discussion, Mr. Enoki commented, "Compared to 30 years ago, the doctoral course environment and career paths have certainly improved. Please continue to spread the word." . Through this discussion, it became clear that there are still problems, and I felt that we also need to make efforts so that students who wish to proceed to doctoral programs can feel at ease.
Through this project, I was reminded of the diverse careers of doctoral students, the social environment that supports them, and the importance of dissemination from academia. In addition, we were made aware of the existence of people who are interested in doctoral careers and issues, and are acting for doctoral course students and young researchers. My desire to become a researcher who can contribute even a little to developing the foundations of young researchers so that they can carry out their research activities with aspirations has become even stronger.
The archived video of the event is available on YouTube, so please take a look.
Click here for Science Agora website
Organizer: Hokkaido University Leading Program in Materials Science (ALP) / Ph.Discover
Co-organizer: Faculty of Science, Hokkaido University School of Science