During my Molecular Biology degree at the University of Aberdeen I decided to embark on an Industrial Placement, unaware, at the time, of immense impact it would have on my professional development and career progression. During my studies I developed an interest in cardiovascular sciences and so, back in 2020, I got accepted to work on heart regeneration at the Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics at the University of Oxford.
Through this year-long experience I learned a plethora of new lab techniques as well as how to work with a new model organism, the zebrafish. Additionally, the opportunity to perform research for an extended period of time allowed me to delve into a long-term project and gain experience on the inner workings of “real-life” science. Through the exposure to lab meetings and by handling data I developed my critical thinking and gained experience on how to assess and interpret experimental results. I was lucky to be given the freedom to shape the project and form my own research ideas and questions. Overall, the placement reaffirmed my ambition to pursue a career in research and provided me with the skills to do so.
Once I submitted my placement thesis and as the project was successful, my Professor at Oxford offered me a job as a Research Assistant at her lab to continue my work. I am very grateful to the University of Aberdeen for allowing me to take a gap year in order to continue working on a project I loved. This was a defining moment in my career as I built on the work that would eventually form the basis of my DPhil studies after completing my MSci.
Now, two years into my DPhil, and having delved into the mechanisms behind the initial characterisation performed during my placement, my findings are published in Nature Cardiovascular Research. If you want to find out more about the role of oxidative metabolism in zebrafish heart regeneration you can read the full story or the research briefing. Looking back to my decision to do a placement I can now clearly see how it propelled my personal and professional growth. It has been an amazing journey, and I would strongly encourage students to do a placement year!
