Believe in yourselves: you are able to reach all levels and roles that you can imagine! It’s just a matter of perseverance, conviction, and hard work.
In primary and high school, I always wanted to know much more about everything I heard in the lessons. This curiosity led me to a scientific career with an orientation in engineering. I had also an inspiring female teacher who amplified my curiosity even more.
I lead a large research group focused on applied science and technological developments in the field of photonic nanobiosensors. The application of our technology in real clinical diagnostic and environmental controls is one of my main objectives. As group leader, I select the research topics, look for the financial support (this is the hardest part!), establish collaborations with hospitals and industries, supervise PhD and post-doctoral students, and pursue other related activities. I would like to highlight that nearly 85% of my group are women, as I firmly support female talent.
The main obstacle I faced in reaching this point was starting an independent scientific career from scratch without financial help, without mentoring or assigned staff. The fact that I was a woman didn’t help, since many colleagues tried to make it so that I’d be directed or supervised by a male scientist, as if I weren’t capable of doing it myself! It has been a very difficult road, but with vision, perseverance, determination, and a l-o-o-o-o-o-t of hard work, I was able to establish myself.
In my book A Female Scientist Jumping Fences (Una Científica Saltando Vallas), I describe many of the obstacles I have faced. Most of them (smaller and bigger) can be summarized in two words: gender bias. If you are a woman and you start to stand out, obstacles appear everywhere. But at the same time, the obstacles and challenges made me react and become more aware of the value of the female scientist and the rights that we have. Only we, women and scientists, can change the course of the standards established by a patriarchal society.
Laura M. Lechuga
Full Professor, Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2) - Nanobiosensor and Bioanalytical Applications Group, Spanish National Research Council (CSIC)
Born in Spain / Resides in Spain
Educational Background: BS, MS in Chemistry, University of Cádiz, Spain; PhD in Chemistry, University Complutense of Madrid, Spain
