"In my mind back then, the University of Glasgow was not the natural habitat for someone from the south-side of Glasgow in Govanhill."
We have just published a new MedSciLife profile of Dr Margaret Cunningham, who is a Chancellor’s Research Fellow at the University of Strathclyde.
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"At sixth form college, I had been on an portfolio preparation course with the intention of going to art school. Whilst I loved art and had always invested my time creatively, it was actually my mum, sitting at the sideline, who became quietly concerned that I was not really challenging myself.
"One day, she showed me an advert in the newspaper looking for apprentice laboratory technicians at the University of Glasgow. I remember laughing and mocking her dismissively – for a start I didn’t have any background in science. In my mind back then, the University of Glasgow was not the natural habitat for someone from the south-side of Glasgow in Govanhill.
"A few weeks later, I came home to find a letter addressed to me with the University of Glasgow logo on the envelope. It turned out my mum had submitted an application on my behalf, and I had been invited to interview at the Department of Medicine and Therapeutics. It was the beginning of a life-long career in science."
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Dr Cunningham is an Academy Springboard grant awardee and part of our acclaimed mentoring programme. Her MedSciLife profile is part of our campaign to encourage people working in medical and health research to share their stories. We hope to promote different working practices and explore how passions and achievements outside work can influence careers. Read her full story, and many more, at: