Work start in the blood

DEAKIN University vicechancellor Jane den Hollander bought a small Singer sewing machine with her first real wage.

Professor den Hollander had to, so she could make her own clothes as a struggling student abroad.

“My first job was as a very lowly research tech, before my PhD,” she said.

“I was new, a migrant to the UK from South Africa from my first degree and it was paid employment. It was not great amounts of money every month but it was a job and I loved it.

“What I used to do every day was tests on blood samples of people who were pregnant and who had some danger they might have spina bifida. I did the tests and accuracy was everything.”

Prof den Hollander had completed a degree in zoology in South Africa before moving to Wales and starting work at Cardiff’s University Hospital.

“I was going to do my PhD in Cardiff but I couldn’t start for the year so I did this job,” she said.

“I bought a sewing machine so I could afford to live in the UK because it was very expensive. It was a great job, I learnt a lot and I just absolutely loved the team-based nature of what I did.

“My first degree was zoology and then I did honours in biochemistry and that’s where I headed then into my PhD, but I learnt serious chemistry in getting it right. This was serious commercial stuff in the hospital getting it right and a lot of our data was used in big research projects.”

Prof den Hollander remembers having been daunted by her new workplace and its mis- sion but she had encouragement for first-time jobseekers to work through any fears.

“The first job, first impressions count, making sure you’re on time, making sure you try as hard as you can and not being frightened that you don’t understand a thing that goes on,” she said.

She also had advice for employers.

“Always take a chance on people, you never know. It’s amazing who works hard,” Prof den Hollander said.

“I was reading someone was saying people are overeducated for the jobs of today, I just think that’s the biggest load of nonsense I’ve heard.

“Always take the most educated person because they’ve shown they’re interested in bettering themselves, and it also then enables us to encourage all kids to stay at school.

“If you leave school, make sure you’re doing something that indicates to people and to yourself that you’re at least making a contribution.”