Many Perry alumni have gone on to careers in agricultural research and some have become research leaders. Here are the stories of five of them in their own words.

Dr Karen Wonnacott

"After gaining my PhD, I worked for DairyCo, the milk division of AHDB, as an R & D Manager, and I now work for BOCM PAULS as a National Ruminant Technical Manager. The skills I acquired from the PhD process enabled me to lay solid foundations for a successful career. I am truly grateful to the Perry Foundation."

Prof Leon Terry

"Without the support of the Perry Foundation during my PhD I would not have remained in UK agricultural science. It is that simple. I am eternally grateful. I am now Professor of Plant Sciences, Head of Plant Science Laboratory and Head of Food Security and Environmental Health at Cranfield University."

Prof Bruce Fitt

"I shall always be grateful to the Perry Foundation for its support both during my PhD and throughout my career, with funding for several successful PhD students working on diseases of wheat, barley and oilseed rape. I am now Professor of Plant Pathology at the University of Hertfordshire and privileged to be a Perry Trustee."

Dr Giulia Cuccato

"The Perry Foundation allowed me to pursue a career in Plant Science as they funded my PhD at the University of Reading. They have my eternal gratitude because their support fuelled my passion for science and agriculture and brought me from a small village in Italy to working for Defra and then Head of the Project Office at The Government Office for Science at Reading University."

Dr Kevin King

"I would like to sincerely thank the Perry Foundation who have always been so supportive as I progressed in my career as a Plant Pathologist. This included funding my PhD at Rothamsted (2008-2012) on a fungal barley pathogen. I am now employed on a permanent contract at Rothamsted as a Research Scientist and supervise my own PhD students. My research interests include aerobiology and novel sampling technologies, emerging fungal pathogens of crops, monitoring/understanding the threat of fungicide resistance, the use of metagenomics approaches to understand the fungal ‘aerobiome’, molecular diagnostics and genomics, and pathogen population biology."