Lisa Nivison-Smith

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BIO
Postdoctoral researcher in vision science. Mom of 2.

Twitter: @LNivisonSmith

Lisa Nivison-Smith

“I learned to focus, to say no, to delegate and to ask for help.”


I was inspired to pursue a career in science by my grandmother. She was a scientist and one of the first women to study physics and chemistry at the University of Sydney. I followed in her footsteps, studying at the same university and graduating with a Bachelor of Science and a PhD in tissue engineering.

I decided to change to the field of vision science for my postdoc. It was a good move - I love the retina. However I felt a lot of pressure to 'catch-up' to those who did PhDs in the field.

5 years after my PhD, I fell pregnant with my first child. I was nervous as I had yet to secure independent funding. My institution provided me with 9 months paid maternity leave and I discovered a new passion: motherhood.

Returning to work was HARD. I was time poor and sleep deprived. I would leave early so I could see my daughter before bed then work nights to catch up. I learned a lot of lessons - to focus, to say no, to delegate and to ask for help. I did more work than ever in fewer hours but still felt I was falling behind.

A year and half later I went on maternity leave for my second child. Two days before he was born I was awarded a competitive 5 year national fellowship, and my university offered me a prestigious position. I cried - I wasn't falling behind after all.

I returned from my second maternity leave during COVID-19. My partner's job cannot be done from home so I was trying to restart my research and navigate virtual academia whilst caring for my kids solo. I was fortunate to have access to carers leave and reduced to part-time hours.

Now COVID-19 is easing, my kids have returned to daycare. A win for working from home is I have time to have breakfast with my kids before daycare. These little moments are important for me. I love my job but my kids are growing up fast, I don't want to miss it.

People ask me if I want my kids to follow in my footsteps like I did with my grandmother. To me, that's not really important. What is important is that they see strong women with independent careers as the norm, not the exception. And the best way to do that is to be one of those women.

catarina moreno