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Pirbright scientist, Dr Jane Edwards, announced as a winner of the 2022 Timewise Power List.
This award recognises those who achieve phenomenal success while working flexibly or part time.
Jane was one of just 25 winners after 13 judges deemed her story to be an inspiration and a demonstration of how successful flexible working can be.
As a member of the Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) research group at Pirbright, Jane’s research focusses on vaccine development for PRRSV - one of the most economically important viruses that infects pigs.
More recently, her efforts played a vital role in the development of COVID-19 vaccines and understanding how the immune system responded to vaccination.
All of this was achieved while working four days a week so that Jane could also look after her eight-year-old son. Jane’s hard work and dedication both to her career and her family earned her this award, and as an Institute, we are glad to be able to offer the flexibility to support world-leading research as well as supporting our staff in their personal life.
Dr Jane Edwards said: “I am keen to show that you can have a successful flexible career in academia, and this is particularly important for the next generation of scientists. I want to show them that if you are organised enough, have the support and you can find trusting and encouraging managers, then you can make it work. You don’t have to sacrifice the idea of having a family to be a scientist or vice versa.”
Professor Simon Graham, Jane’s line manager said: “I am so pleased that Jane has been recognised in this way. Jane is a fantastic role model for early career researchers, demonstrating you can have a successful flexible career in academia”.