Magdalena Madej

My name is Magdalena Madej. I did my Bachelor's in biotechnology, followed by Master’s in molecular biotech. I studied as an Erasmus student for half a year in Munich. I also did a couple of internships in Germany during my studies. Currently, I’m waiting for a paper to be published, so I can defend my doctoral thesis.

I have learned a lot. I have learned that I'm able to solve very complex problems by myself. I have learned how to think in a very independent way, and I have understood how important it is to have people around you who are supportive and who are able to guide you. When postgraduate research studies start, you don't know how it works with publishing and so on, so you need to trust someone to guide us you, so you can graduate in these four years. You do not have much power as a PhD student. You really depend on other people, especially your supervisor, and it can be tough.

As a PhD student at Lund University, you can attend many different courses and professional development programmes, which is absolutely great. Since Lund is a part of Medicon Valley, you can also find many opportunities to attend various career events. You can go to lunch events with scientists from all across the world, and talk with them. You will see that it is easy to approach them and receive some feedback, and that is amazing. I think it is good to do networking and talk about your science.