From shed to Sheffield
Julie Hyde is course director for chemistry with study in industry at the University of Sheffield and now serves on our National Educational Division Council. She takes us through her career path to date and shares with us her passion for teaching and outreach.
“I was interested in science from a young age, inspired by my Dad – we used to carry out small science experiments in his garden shed. I became interested in chemistry and colours, although there was no opportunity for me to study it at school. I thank both of my parents for supporting me and encouraging me to pursue a career in chemistry and having the faith in me to become successful.”
Julie left school without any formal qualifications but took O-levels (equivalent to the current GCSEs) at a local college. As it was not possible for her to continue full-time education, she took a job in a large chemical company as an assistant in a quality control laboratory. “Every day I got to carry out exciting practical chemistry. The experiments really got me hooked into a future career in chemistry.”
After leaving her job and taking a BSc degree at Queen Mary College, University of London, she worked at Thurrock Technical College as a laboratory technician and started teaching chemistry while studying for a PGCE part-time. Julie then moved to Sheffield for a full-time teaching position and taught on a variety of academic and vocational courses at Sheffield College.
Julie then studied for a part-time PhD at the University of Sheffield, which took nine years to complete while she continued to teach full-time. Julie joined the University of Sheffield staff in 2007 and is now a senior university teacher.
“I really believe I am a practical chemist, which is my major role at university; teaching in the undergraduate laboratory in Sheffield, and for the last five years, travelling to teach on our joint degree with Nanjing Tech University in China.
“I think those early days carrying out hands-on experiments with my Dad set the scene for my future. I really believe it’s the early years that can be so inspirational!”
Julie’s involvement with the Royal Society of Chemistry began when she was at university. After she graduated, she became MRSC and achieved Chartered Chemist status (CChem). By 2001, she had become a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry. Julie has been a committee member of her local section since 1987 and has held various positions in this time including publicity officer, national representative for the committee for local sections, and chair in 1990 and 2015/2017.
“I was concerned that there was no place for chemistry teachers to network nationally at meetings and conferences. The Secondary and Further Education (SaFE) group was launched in 2015 and through this, we have run two successful national conferences which have been enjoyed by teachers and educators.
"In 2016 year we were honoured to have newly elected Royal Society of Chemistry president, Professor Sir John Holman, introduce and present at our conference in the summer (teachers watch out for the next conference in July 2017!). My RSC career has just moved into a different phase as I have been elected to serve for a three-year term on the National Educational Division Council.”
Julie has also had an interest in outreach throughout her career, running a Chemical Industries Roadshow bus in Sheffield in the early 1990s, as well as being involved in a number of Chemistry at Work events as both an organiser and presenter.
“In an interesting link up with W.H Perkin’s purple dye, mauveine, my favourite colour is mauve. I teach in a mauve lab coat and I have lectured on this topic in venues around the UK and as far away as Shanghai, Beijing and Nanjing.”
Through her outreach activities, Julie aims to inspire and see people have fun with chemistry.
“I want to inspire young people and the public about chemistry. It is an amazing subject and really has an impact on our daily lives. Many people think chemistry is hard and they cannot study it because “it’s too difficult”. However, through teaching both young people and adult returners to education, I believe I have encouraged them to gain confidence and enjoy the subject as well.
“I am dedicated to sharing my experiences with other chemists locally and nationally, such as teachers and educators through the SaFE work, colleagues in higher education through the RSC’s Tertiary Education group, and also industrialists through the EnterprisePlus scheme.
“I would like to think that I have made an impact on chemistry both locally, nationally and internationally, and have reached out to enthuse and inspire young people with the excitement of our discipline.”
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