Scientists should have their own website! This is not only about scientific positioning, but also about visibility in the online environment, in which 93% of the next generation of scientists are all in.
Advantage of Having a Website
Visibility in science influences opportunities for cooperation and careers. Your own website with research projects, publications and conference papers is a good idea. This is especially true for scientists who are looking for resources. Your own website can be an advantage, especially when it comes to positions within and outside of science, professorships or when collaborations with other researchers and third-party funders are sought.
One possibility of self-marketing is your own website. As a rule, academics have their own personal website, but a website that is independent of the university should also be considered. There are two reasons for this: First, the personal websites of the universities do not have any individual design options, neither in terms of structure nor design. Most of the time, categories such as contact, courses and publications are given and cannot be individually adapted. And secondly, the data is gone as soon as you leave college.
A website of your own allows both your own design options and a permanent presence of yourself and your academic achievements. Above all, it allows the permanent presentation of one’s own research profile and the public discussion of scientific topics.
Static business card on the web or a blog?
When designing your own website in science, there are different options. In order to make the decision for your own website easier, I would like to make the distinction between “business card on the Internet” and science blog. In the end, I will show that there can also be a compromise between a personal website and a topic website.
Personal website or business card in the network
On the personal website, you present yourself as a person with their research profile. Possibly the categories that you want to serve are not different from those on the personal website of the universities. You put yourself in the center of attention as a person, present your biography. In addition, there are your own research priorities.
Optionally, you could add a “News” category to your personal page, in which you publish a kind of status report, for example with whom you are writing a paper together, which conference you will be attending soon or which course you are planning. You could also write success reports, for example if you have received a certificate, for example a university didactic certificate.
Topic website or blog
Another possibility to become visible as a researcher is your own blog. A science blog helps to occupy a topic and to be widely visible with this topic. However, blogs live from the fact that they are regularly used. This means that scientists should regularly fill their own blog with fresh texts. In addition to writing your own articles, you can of course also publish interviews with other researchers – or publish guest articles. Your own (research) person can of course also be positioned in a blog – here, too, it is possible to insert the category “about me” and to list research projects, conference contributions and publications.
An alternative to running your own blog on your own is blogging with others. A joint topic website is particularly useful when several (young) scientists are researching a topic.
Your own science website – just do it!
Whether you prefer a topic page or a person page for your own visibility depends on how much time you want or can invest. The advantage of a blog is that it is growing steadily and can be found via search engines by all people who are interested in your topic.
Start by searching a good hosting service and platform for your website. You can read through reviews to find the right one that fits your budget. Alternatively, you can contact web designers to do everything for you.
An interim solution would also be possible, however, a personal website with a slightly larger topic section in which you regularly report on the progress of your research project. This part of the topic could become a blog in which you then report more and more interesting facts about your topic, propose theses or even conduct an interview.
With your own website, regardless of whether it is a personal website or a themed website, it is important that all information is always up-to-date. This means that you maintain and update this website regularly.