1. Most of a forensic scientist's time is spent in the lab.
2. Or writing reports and doing admin.
3. We don't cut up dead bodies.
4. We don't spend a ton of time at crime scenes.
5. It's all a lot less glamorous than it looks on TV.
6. And most analyses definitely take longer than an hour to run.
7. It can be pretty gruesome work sometimes.
8. And sometimes it can get very tedious.
9. Forensic scientists don't tend to do ALL THE THINGS.
10. You need to be a pretty good communicator.
11. All evidence is sent back to the police after we're done with it.
12. Despite what TV would have you believe, DNA will not solve every single case.
13. We can’t examine a bit of paint and say exactly which car it came from.
14. We can't always say with certainty the exact circumstances leading to a piece of evidence.
15. Testifying in court can be extremely nerve-racking.
16. But it's also pretty exhilarating at the same time.
17. And when your work helps someone, it means all that time and effort was worth it.
With thanks to Dr Kelly Sheridan, senior lecturer in forensic science at Northumbria University.