The 2019 Australian and New Zealand Society for Mass Spectrometry (ANZSMS) Conference, convened by Dr Gus Grey (SMS), was held in Auckland from January 30 to February 3. Approximately 140 delegates came together to participate in sessions that ranged from ion behaviour in space, to applications of mass spectrometry in health and disease, and the development of analytical instrumentation for point-of-care applications.
As part of ANZSMS27, a ‘Careers in Science’ pre-conference workshop was held for early career researchers. This included a panel discussion with three leading international academic scientists – Professor Ron Heeren (Maastricht University), Prof Yu Xia (Tsinghua University) and Associate Professor Adam Trevitt (University of Wollongong), and three New Zealand-based scientists with industry experience – Dr Joel Rindelaub (University of Auckland), Dr Mónica Martinez-Avilè (International Accreditation New Zealand), and Dr Daniel Milligan (Syft Technologies).
Approximately 50 attendees (students, post-docs, technical staff) engaged in an open, entertaining, educational and inspiring discussion about each panel member’s career in science. Information from each panel was complementary, reflecting the different scientific environments of academia and industry, yet advice from each panel was common, and centred around enthusiasm, passion and confidence.
The event was facilitated by Dr Nicholas Demarais (University of Auckland), and acted as the ideal ice-breaker for early career researchers to approach the high profile invitees attending ANZSMS27. The ANZSMS27 organising committee express their sincere thanks to the School of Medical Sciences for supporting this successful event.
