Episode 1

full
Published on:

14th Jan 2026

Sarah McLusky on diverse careers, purposeful events and effective communication (CAL135, S8E1)

Dr. Sarah McLusky, is an advocate and role model for research-adjacent careers. As an advocate Sarah hosts the 'Research Adjacent' podcast, which showcases career opportunities beyond traditional academic and industry roles. She talks about why started the podcast and also talks about her four main categories of research adjacent roles, emphasising the importance of recognising the many contributors to successful research. As a role model, Sarah shares her own experiences moving into a research adjacent role post-PhD, now working as a freelancer who supports research organisations through events and communications. Some of her key insights are around how to prepare participants for meaningful engagement at events and the value of effective research communication. She encourages us to rethink career possibilities and the significance of culture in research environments.

00:29 Intro to the Episode

02:49 Introducing Sarah McLusky

04:33 The Concept of Research Adjacent

08:00 Research As a Team Sport

12:02 Career Paths Beyond Academia

20:10 Four Main Categories of Research Adjacent Roles

24:22 Sarah McLusky's Journey to a Research Adjacent Role

29:36 Balancing Passion and Pragmatism

33:17 Navigating Freelance Work

34:51 The Importance of Gathering with Purpose

45:54 Supporting the Communication of Great Research

48:49 Final Thoughts and Resources

51:25 Outro

Related Links:

About Sarah and her work

Website https://sarahmclusky.com/

Newsletter https://sarahmclusky.com/gathering-with-purpose

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahmclusky/

Research Adjacent Podcast

https://researchadjacent.com/podcast/

https://pod.link/1663857550

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About the Podcast

Changing Academic Life
What can we do, individually and collectively, to change academic life to be more sustainable, collaborative and effective? This podcast series offers long-form conversations with academics and thought leaders who share stories and insights, as well as bite-size musings on specific topics drawing on literature and personal experience.
For more information go to https://changingacademiclife.com
Also see https://geraldinefitzpatrick.com to leave a comment.
NOTE: this is an interim site and missing transcripts for the older podcasts. Please contact me to request specific transcripts in the meanwhile.

About your host

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Geraldine Fitzpatrick

Geraldine Fitzpatrick (Geri Fitz), is an awarded Professor i.R. at TU Wien, with degrees in Informatics, and in Positive Psychology and Coaching Psychology, after a prior career as a nurse/midwife. She has International experience working in academic, research, industry and clinical settings. She is a sought-after facilitator, speaker, trainer and coach who cares about creating environments in which people can thrive, enabling individual growth, and creating collegial collaborative cultures. She works with academics and professionals at all levels, from senior academic leaders, to mid and early career researchers, to PhD students. She is also a mentor for academics and has been/is on various Faculty evaluation panels and various International Advisory Boards. An example of a course is the Academic Leadership Development Course for Informatics Europe, run in conjunction with Austen Rainer, Queens Uni Belfast. She also offers bespoke courses.