Sandya Athukorala

PhD candidate 👩‍🔬 @AmiralianLab @AIBNatUQ 🇦🇺 | Antimicrobial Materials | @UPeradeniya alumnus| 🐈 🇱🇰 | ❤️ ❤️ Where there is family, there is love ❤️ ❤️

[Sandya Athukorala @sandya_92]

Just published! 🎉
Our review on dual-functional antimicrobial & antibiofouling surface coatings is out in @MaterHoriz @RoySocChem

https://t.co/eL6jkGjuDL

Thank you amazing @AmiralianLab

@AIBNatUQ @UQ_News #WomenInSTEM #AcademicChatter #Sustainability #healthcare #pandemic

[Re-energising Your Career @career_re]

#AcademicTwitter😂#phdvoice #PhDlife

[Science Magazine @ScienceMagazine]

When asked to draw a scientist, school-age kids in the United States are increasingly sketching women, according to a study from 2018.

Read more on #STEMSTEAMDay: https://t.co/1TZ0pwBtMJ @NewsfromScience

[Re-energising Your Career @career_re]

#AcademicTwitter😂#phdvoice #PhDlife #Halloween

[The Struggling Scientists @TheStrugglingS4]

What’s the number one factor that makes PhD students happier?
𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧. 👇

That’s what stood out to me in Nature’s latest global PhD survey. Students who met with their supervisors for at least one hour a week were significantly more satisfied with their PhD experience.

Not just because of research progress, but because they felt supported as people, not just as research machines.

⭐In countries like Brazil and Australia, where students reported the highest satisfaction, supervision was more collaborative and grounded in mutual respect.
⭐In India, most PhD students spend at least an hour weekly with their supervisor.
⭐But in the UK and Germany, over 60% of students see their supervisor less than one hour per week.

It’s not surprising then that one of the most common pieces of advice from PhD students was:
"𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐫 𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐨𝐫."

𝐀 𝐟𝐞𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐫 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨:
👍 An hour a week is more powerful than you think.
👍You don’t need to have all the answers, just show up consistently.
👍Even short check-ins can prevent small frustrations from becoming major problems.

𝐀 𝐟𝐞𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐝𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐏𝐡𝐃:
👍You deserve to be supported, not just supervised.
👍You are not asking for too much by wanting mentorship.
👍Your supervisor matters more than your research topic. Choose wisely, if you still can.

Good supervision shouldn't be a luxury.
It should be the foundation!

And in the long run, it benefits everyone, including the students, the research, and the entire academic ecosystem.

Have you had a supervisor who made a difference during your PhD?
Would love to hear what helped you feel supported.

I hope this helps.
Btw...

Be sure to check out our podcast on YouTube, where we share...
✅ Helpful advice for in and outside of academia
✅ Useful info about AI tools in academia
✅ + advice to make your research life less of a struggle

👉 You can find us on YouTube as The Struggling Scientists

[The Struggling Scientists @TheStrugglingS4]

Still can't believe this got passed reviewers😂

[The PhD Place @ThePhDPlace]

Qualitative researchers when they see statistics

[AIBN Research @AIBNatUQ]

🦠 AIBN researchers are fighting Germs — Sustainably! 🌱

In a recent paper led by PhD student Sandya Athukoralalage, under the guidance of @AmiralianLab, researchers have developed an eco-friendly, dual-functional surface coating made from sugarcane trash.

[Hadas Weiss @weiss_hadas]

my unfinished paper watching me scrolling twitter

[Sandya Athukorala @sandya_92]

@ACSPublications Here, we present a cost-effective, eco-friendly, and highly scalable cellulose fiber coating derived from agricultural waste. This dual-functional coating exhibits both antimicrobial and low-fouling properties, offering a promising solution for controlling microbial transmission.

[Sandya Athukorala @sandya_92]

New publication alert 🔔

First research paper from my PhD project😻

🎉 Dual-Functional Antimicrobial and Low-Fouling Cellulose Coatings

Check it out: https://t.co/r926h5sTsh

@AmiralianLab

@AIBNatUQ @UQ_News #AntimicrobialCoatings #SustainableMaterials #CelluloseInnovation

[Sandya Athukorala @sandya_92]

@ACSPublications

[Joy Wolfram, PhD @WolframJoy]

Apply now: Two faculty positions are available in the School of Chemical Engineering @UQ_News #Australia

Level B or C - equivalent to Assistant Professor

https://t.co/W9rMcW2TSN

[Dr Daniel Heath, recruiting PhD students @DrDanielHeath]

We're recruiting 3 PhD students for 2 projects: blood vessel tissue engineering and materials for cancer models.

Students will be in the Depart of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Melbourne.

Please share and read on for more details.

@UnimelbBME @ASBTE1 @UniMelb

[Dr Meming @Dr_Meming]

When people ask why I wasn’t productive at work today