Professor Carlene Wilson
Qualifications
BA (Awarded 1980).
BA Hons (1981).
PhD (1985).
MBA (2000).
Current place of employment
Department of Gastroenterology , School of Medicine, Flinders University- Carlene.Wilson@flinders.edu.au
Previous employment
CSIRO Human Nutrition.
CSIRO Mathematical and Information Sciences.
DSTO Land Operations Division.
Australasian Centre for Policing Research (Formerly National Police Research Unit).
Deakin University, Disability Studies (Formerly Victoria College.
Current job activities
CCSA Chair in Cancer Prevention (Behavioural Research)
Enjoyable aspects of job
Multi-disciplinary in nature; Solving real-world problems; Opportunity for international travel.
Difficult aspects of job
The same things that make the job interesting also make it difficult. In addition, misunderstanding about the nature of psychology and psychologists and what constitutes “real” science also increase the frustration level.
Maintenance of skills and professional knowledge
Having a cohort of like trained and minded work colleagues as well as working with a motivated group of PhD and Honours students helps with skill maintenance.
Future goals
To be able to pursue an area of interest in research for a period that can result in significant scientific breakthrough.
Words of advice to new and current students
Never underestimate the strength of your training or what you have to contribute; don’t be scared to extend outside your area of immediate knowledge – your problem-solving training and skills will not let you down; keep reading the literature – even the development of solutions for applied problems should be guided by a sound theoretical understanding.
Did you have a clear idea of what you wanted as a career before you started University, while you were there, or on graduation?
No – and 20 years later my ambitions and desires are still evolving and changing.
What was the most important lesson you learnt at the University of Adelaide?
That education is about learning how to think and problem solve rather than content.
What did you like most about your time at the University of Adelaide?
The chance to explore what the world has to offer – the student body and academic resources were both outstanding.
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