Being a Rocket Scientist…
… means getting to work across many different projects and with different clients to help transform people’s lives. To find out more what life at Rocket Science is like, read below from some of our team.
What’s your current role?
As a Lead Consultant I’m involved in proposal writing at the bidding stage, while at a project level I project manage smaller projects through regular client meetings and divvying up work within the project team. I also assist with the delivery of larger projects by getting involved with fieldwork, analysis and reporting so there’s a lot of variety in what I do.
How did you get here?
I originally worked as a journalist but fell out of love with it and after a period of reflection realised what I liked most about journalism was the research aspect. Thankfully a lot of the skills I learnt as a journalist – managing deadlines, talking to people, writing – transfer over to the world of research, so I moved into market research. After a while in market research I wanted to move closer to my interest in society and communities and made the move to social research. I started off as a consultant at Rocket Science and after getting to grips with the finer points of social research made the move to Lead Consultant.
What’s a typical day like?
Hard to define! It’s a real mix. I could be meeting with clients to discuss the various stages projects are in (at the beginning: what questions do you want answered, in the middle: how do we arrange fieldwork, towards the end: what do you want in your report?), interviewing service users or stakeholders, designing and delivering workshops, analysing monitoring data, or writing up reports. I also try and make time to stay up to date with the sectors we work within by checking news or scanning reports, as well as making time for my own development.
What was your best moment so far?
Our in-person get together (the Lab) in 2022 for sure. I was only a few months in and got to meet everyone in real life having worked with some of the Newcastle and Edinburgh team through Teams only. I got to run a session on one of my interests (barriers children and young people face in their development) and pick the brains of all our staff. Also learnt a lot from everyone else, all the while getting to do some fun activities in the beautiful city of York. Looking forward to our next annual Lab!
What has been your biggest learning?
In our areas of work, the first project I saw through from start to end was all about the aspirations of young people in West Yorkshire and the barriers they face in developing positive goals including the role parents play, school exclusions, and local public transport options. I’ve continued working on a lot of our projects focussed on children and young people so this has helped frame so of my other work. As a social researcher I’ve also learnt a lot about how to plan an evaluation and learnt a lot of new methodologies.
What’s your advice for future Rocket Scientists?
Ask questions. Our organisation is full of people who have been working in this space for decades and others who have pivoted over from other sectors, as well as those early on in their career. Every single Rocket Scientist has unique views, knowledge or skills to share, and are happy to do so.
What’s your current role?
I work on a variety of grant programmes for clients including local and regional authorities, which focus on supporting some of the most disadvantaged groups in society, such as young people at risk or involved in criminal activity. I provide support and guidance from the grant design stage, through to the application stage and then post the award of a grant, reviewing monitoring reports and making grant payments. My role involves working collaboratively with clients to best manage the different stages of their grant programme. I also provide support and guidance to applicants during the application process and grant holders during their grant.
How did you get here?
I left university with a MA in Modern History. I am originally from Cornwall and after university, I temped for Plymouth Council, but the bright lights of London were calling and I moved to the ‘big smoke’ with no job or anywhere to live! A week later, I had found a temp job and a house to move into. After a couple of years in financial services, I moved to the charity sector and have worked in grants for nearly 8 years now. I started off at the FIA Institute, the Dunhill Medical Trust followed and I then moved to People’s Health Trust, a charity which provides funding for projects that are seeking to address the underlying structural cause of health inequalities.
What’s a typical day like?
Truthfully, there is no typical day in your life at Rocket Science! Depending on the priorities of any of the multiple grant programmes I work on, I might be answering queries from grant holders, preparing for an e-visit with a grant holder, reviewing monitoring information, moderating eligibility assessments for grant applications, designing a scoring rubric, preparing a grant assessment, drafting a feedback letter… The list goes on!
What was your best moment so far?
Recently, I have worked extensively with a client, designing their grant programme from the very beginning, which has been invaluable experience, putting into practice what I have learnt from my years of working in grants at what a ‘good’ grants programme looks like. I am particularly proud that as part of the design of the programme, I removed some of the common barriers that stop small, grassroot organisations from normally applying for this type of funding.
What has been your biggest learning?
When designing the grant programme, I have been keen to ensure that we are asking for information that is proportionate in relation to their grant request. It has been important to distinguish between information that is ‘nice to have’ and information that is needed to make a decision of whether to fund.
What’s your advice for future Rocket Scientists?
If you are facing a tricky situation with the management of a grant or want a second opinion about how best to manage an aspect of a grant programme, reach out to your colleagues and ask their opinion. From my experience, trouble shooting ideas with my colleagues has been so beneficial and helped me find the right solution.
Come and work with us
We’re always looking for partners and specialists to work with. Check out our vacancies for current opportunities or get in touch if you are interested in joint projects.
