Portrait of Hazar, CNRS researcher, passionate and fascinating

In 2021, it is unfortunately still possible to hear that some jobs are reserved for men. Yet women have just as much ability to work wherever they want. The proof with Hazar Guesmi, researcher at the CNRS.

Firefighter, policewoman, archaeologist or even a construction supervisor, are professions that are too rarely heard in women. Fun fact: women also do this type of job and they do it brilliantly!
Because nothing should prevent a child from dreaming and doing everything to exercise the profession of his dreams, we have collected inspiring, fascinating and edifying testimonies. Proof that: yes, whether you are a girl or a boy, you can become whatever you want!

Besides, know that the sciences are not just for men. Some women even excel in this environment! This is particularly the case of Hazar Guesmi, a researcher at the CNRS (national center for scientific research). Physicist, chemist and theorist, her job is to make models for intelligent materials developed in the Montpellier Institute, where she practices. "It can be materials to fight against pollution, to detect pesticides or to treat diseases for example", she explains. A fascinating job, then, but one for which she worked a lot: eight years of hard study and moving to another country. This journey, the researcher agreed to tell us, to show us that even as a woman from a modest background, anything is possible!

See also: She dismantles prejudices about the teaching profession

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Video by Leslie Muya

From aviatrix to physicist

Hazar Guesmi is Tunisian. "I grew up in Tunis until I was 25, in a relatively modest family", she tells us. As a child, she dreamed of being an aviator. But to do this job in Tunisia, you have to go through the military or spend a lot of money to enroll in an aviation school, but she did not have the means. "So when I graduated, I applied to the military academy, but my application was sent back to me, telling me there was no promotion of women", she says.

Far from being discouraged, Hazar Guesmi enrolled in college in physics and chemistry, expecting to enter the military academy after two years. "But in the end I became passionate about physics and preferred to continue in this environment. I was comfortable, there was a logic that suited me well, I was good at math and the fact of trying to observe things, to find a meaning in them is something that I like a lot ” , she continues.

Hazar Guesmi was lucky to have parents who have always supported him on this journey. Even if she was unfortunately confronted with some incomprehensible relatives: "I remember an uncle saying to me, 'What for? Study two years, you become a teacher and you will have time to raise your children ’. Another, meaner, told me: 'If your engine is a 4L don't make it a plane'. These are remarks that we even remember 30 years later, it sticks and it marks. " However, the researcher didn’t let this destabilize and continued to work hard to get what she wanted.

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Eight years of study

To access the position of theorist and chemist at the CNRS, Hazar Guesmi first took a master's degree in physics and chemistry then she applied for a DEA in materials science (former French diploma equivalent to the second year of a master's degree) in Marseille. She then moved from Tunisia to France to continue her studies. After her DEA, she obtained the doctoral scholarship and did a thesis on condensed subjects.

“I then landed an ATER (Temporary Teaching and Research Attaché) position at the Sorbonne University in Paris. I taught physics subjects while doing research at the INSP (Institute of NanoSciences in Paris). I went to Montpellier for two years for postdoc work (it means being a researcher, but on a fixed-term contract). I finally applied for the CNRS competition and got a job in Paris. I spent four years in the capital before requesting my transfer to Montpellier ", she explains.

Hazar Guesmi really enjoyed living in Paris and retains a lot of positives from this period. But at the same time it was very tiring. Her husband living in Montpellier, she often traveled there and back. When she got pregnant, those constant journeys became exhausting: "That's when I requested my transfer. "

Today, the researcher is fulfilled in her profession. "What I prefer is the contact with the students I supervise and when they come to me with a new idea or a result", she confides. Although some missions are less interesting than others: “We lack budget and resources, and that slows us down in our research. We spend our time putting together files and following calls for projects … which is not bad for learning to value your file or manage money, but it takes a long time. "

Benevolence

Hazar Guesmi has never paid the price for sexist remarks or stereotypes during his career. “When I got pregnant it was a nice surprise, but I had a lot of doubts about my ability to take on a new life as a mom and complete all of my current plans. But I ran into kindhearted colleagues, including a man who told me 'don't take it like that, it's only positive' ", she says. A benevolence that feeds his desire to stay in this environment.

When she talks about her job, the theorist often arouses people's curiosity: "They are often surprised because they don't necessarily know each other, they tell each other that we are 'mugs'. You feel like you are a rare species (laughs). They are curious and want to know what we are working on, but it’s hard to explain in two words. "

In the meantime, if it had to be done again, she would do exactly the same. "I'm lucky to love my job and want to go in the morning. Then, when we talk about science, it's still very interesting and intellectually stimulating, ”she says. It also encourages young people who would like to embark on this path not to hesitate: "If I had one message for them, it's: Yes We can! Anything is possible when you give yourself the means. Even coming from a modest background, if you work and you want to, you can do it! " It must be said that his career is a great proof of success.