Carol Phillips is the Volunteer of the Week for her help in relation to the new degree course accreditation scheme and the Young Ambassador Prize. Carol has done a great deal for IFST in the past and and more recently, for the Education and Careers Committee.
HOW DOES IT FEEL TO BE RECOGNISED AS VOLUNTEER OF THE WEEK?
I was surprised and honoured.
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO BE A MEMBER OF A BODY LIKE IFST?
Membership gives one professional credibility. It also it provides great opportunities for networking with other professionals that one might not normally meet: it provides a ‘community of practice’. As a community IFST can influence policy makers and others in food matters for now and for the future.
WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO SOMEONE THINKING ABOUT A CAREER IN FOOD SCIENCE?
Go for it! It provides a wide range of possibilities from food engineering to microbiology to sensory science in a correspondingly wide range of arenas from primary production to consumer behaviour. For those considering the profession get involved as early as possible via work experience or visiting food factories or universities providing food science courses to see for yourself the diversity of the profession.
IN MARCH YOU WILL BE TAKING OVER AS THE CHAIR OF IFST’S EDUCATION & CAREERS COMMITTEE, WHAT DO YOU SEE AS THE COMMITTEE’S BIGGEST CHALLENGE OVER THE NEXT YEAR OR SO?
Now the accreditation scheme has been ‘launched’ the biggest challenge is ensuring the governance of the processes and procedures. Also a key issue for the ECC is that the knowledge of food science as a profession is not high among school students and teachers which is reflected in the ’flow’ into the profession. This is a major challenge for ECC together with the support of those ‘early career’ food scientists who maybe in their first employment. The ECC will be looking at a range of measures to address some of these issues.
TELL US SOMETHING ABOUT YOURSELF THAT NOT MANY PEOPLE KNOW
I run about 3 miles five times a week- yes even at my age!!!
