Li Ma, postdoc at Centre for research on child and adolescent mental health

How long have you worked at Karlstad University?

“I started officially in December 2017. I arrived in September and worked here a bit before this position started in December. I really enjoy being here and I like the environment, both the natural environment and my workplace.”

What makes Karlstad University an attractive employer?

“I’d say there are two reasons. The first and most important aspect making this an attractive workplace is the work environment and the passion for research here. As a researcher, I want to be somewhere I can continue my research and have the freedom to do so, and Karlstad University gives me this opportunity. What I’m currently doing is a combination of my earlier work and new things that I’ve learned here. It’s a good combination of earlier experience and the new things I do today.”

“The other aspect is the team I need to do good work, which we have here. Everyone has their own research interests, but at the same time I have access to my colleagues and can communicate with them about different areas, which is very important.”

What is working as a postdoc at Karlstad University like?

“It’s a lot of fun and very rewarding, and I appreciate the freedom I have in my work and also the understanding shown for different situations. As an example, my colleagues show a lot of patience with my Swedish. When a conversation becomes too difficult in Swedish, they take that into account and let me take my time in expressing myself. In the worst case, we switch to English, and I appreciate this. Although I have been in Sweden for many years, it is first at this workplace where I have felt encouraged to learn the language better, because of the energy of my colleagues and heads. I’ve never considered this in my earlier work because everyone understands English, but here people with foreign backgrounds are encouraged to speak Swedish more often and in a nice way, which means that I have taken a big step that I haven’t felt necessary before. This is a good example of the warmth here, and although I’m new to this workplace I don’t feel like the new employee who may be excluded. The workplace is also well integrated into the research environment and this is of great benefit to my work.”

Do you feel that you have the possibility to control and influence your own work situation?

“I think I have the freedom to do my work in the way I want to, so to speak. Sometimes we publish something individually and independently, while we need to work together at other times. That gives you the opportunity to learn from others and improve yourself. We should have the opportunity to both work individually and together, because these are learning processes, and at this workplace we can do so. By doing this I have learned lots of different things from different people, which is a valuable experience.” 

“As first author I am in full control of my own work. When working together you take the views of others into account and discuss them. When I am first author I like to receive different ideas and opinions from others, and when I am second author I like sharing my opinions and ideas with the first author. I have the freedom to do research in areas I choose myself. This is important, because it is curiosity about an area that eventually leads to a well-executed project.”

What is the best part of your job?

“The best part of my research work is knowing what I really want to do research on. Sometimes this can be difficult, because there are so many thing you want to do. That can be hard, but when you know what you want to do research on and you have data to analyse it becomes a lot of fun. You have a hypothesis based on theories and previous research, and from this original question you see which results you get from the collected data, which is very rewarding. Whether the result, based on reliable data, is consistent with the theory and hypothesis differs from case to case. If they are inconsistent, you simply have to find out why you got this result. This is the best part of my job – doing research on why things are as they are.”

How would you describe Karlstad University to someone who doesn’t work here?

“The biggest difference I noticed from other institutions is the library. In my experience, libraries are usually so quiet, but here there is a lot of talking in different groups and this surprised me. I finally asked a librarian why this is the case and received a very good answer that changed my general views of libraries. It was quite simply to provide students with a good work environment, and it works very well. Students have a meeting place after their classes where they can discuss and do group work and so on, and this is a great idea.”

“There are two aspects that describe this workplace accurately. The first is the warmth from colleagues and heads, both at work and outside. Everybody is here to support each other and do a good job together. The other aspect is therefore how supportive my colleagues and heads are, also at other parts of the university. People are always available to help you find what you’re looking for, both through the library and for more general things at the information centre. I am also supported by my own unit as soon as I indicate that I need help, which is very positive.”

Is working at Karlstad University what you expected when you applied for the job?

“I had no idea what to expect when I applied. I only knew that there was a city called Karlstad, but I had almost no additional information. When I arrived I realised that it was a big university with a good network with other research centres and so on, and this makes a good impression.”