It's International Women's Day on Friday 8 March – a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. This year's theme is Balance for Better, which calls for a more gender-balanced society. From the board room to the government, media coverage to employment, gender balance is essential for economies and communities to thrive.

To celebrate International Women's Day, we spoke to women from the Faculty of Life Science & Medicine King's about their careers, inspirations and what drives them. 

"No two days are the same and that's what keeps it interesting"

Dr Manasi Nandi is a Senior Lecturer in Integrative Pharmacology within the School of Cancer & Pharmaceutical Sciences. 

What are you proudest of in your career?

Difficult one to answer, proud of my scientific and teaching achievements throughout my career but probably most proud of the staff and students who have been a part of my research group and gone on to establish their own independent careers - it's nice to know i had some small part to play in that.

Why did you decide to go into this field of study/research/work? What would you tell women who want to study in your field?

I've always been motivated to do something in the healthcare field. My career path has spanned many areas of healthcare research. I also really enjoy the teaching component. It's a job and that can be moulded to suit your unique skills set. No two days are the same and that's what keeps it interesting.

For people entering the field, keep your options open, take opportunities outside of your academic comfort zone, widen your network and breadth of skills you develop - you'll hopefully eventually find a career path that works for you. Above all else you should enjoy what you do.

Who or what made you want to work in this field? How has your field changed since you started, and where do you see it going in the future?

I was inspired by academic lecturers during my undergraduate degree which led to various research opportunities including an industry placement and a PhD - both of which shaped my career significantly. 

Cardiovascular disease is a major global health issue and a the research field is enormous. I've been part of many different types of research project ranging from a lab based scientist characterising new drug targets for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases to a data scientist working at my desk analysing large clinical data sets validate early diagnosis technologies. 

The field has definitely shifted more to data sciences - making better use of the data we have and this is as a result of the  technological advances in data collection, storage and sharing. There's more interdisciplinary collaboration which is important. In particular we have much more access to human data which helps ensure fundamental research can be better translated to address human healthcare problems.