Tyrone McDonald

Research Projects Officer - CSIRO

Graduated in:

2010

Course completed:

Bachelor of Science majoring in biotechnology

Currently working for:

CSIRO - Australian Animal Health Laboratory

How long have you been working for this organisation?

1 year

Position title and short job description:

Research Projects Officer - Agent Characterisation. My work mainly involves the extraction of nucleic acids and analysing them with techniques such as qRT-PCR to detect diseases in livestock. Many of the diseases are exotic and all work is done in a PC3 laboratory. I also work heavily with the automation of many extraction and purification procedures.

Working highlight so far:

Having several of the automated protocols I have created, used routinely in daily analysis.

What are the things you enjoy most about your job?

The ability to think creatively to overcome a problem, or to try and create a more efficient methodology to an existing procedure. Experimenting with and validating new chemistries is also quite challenging and exciting.

What do you intend to do in the future?

I intend to continue working. I may consider further study in the future, but for now I intend to knuckle down and enjoy my work.

#1 tip for current students studying your course:

Get experience working in labs. Spend time in your undergraduate degree volunteering to visit labs for work experience. It allows you to learn valuable skills while getting a foot inside the door for the future. A couple of weeks a year can make a huge difference.