It's supposed to be fun!

Katrine Bych (born 1970) wrote her PhD dissertation at Department of Plant Biology, about the regulation of the plant plasma membrane proton pump.

 

Current occupation: postdoc at University of Cambridge, England, where she started just after finishing her PhD. With her she brought husband and two children.

 

Was it difficult to get a job?
”The job I have at the moment, I financed myself. After handing in my dissertation, I applied for money from the Danish Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation for two years at Cambridge. I have since had that amount supplied by a Young Elite Scientist Award and money from the Carlsberg Foundation. That has given me the opportunity to do three years of research, starting from scratch.”

 

What do you do at Cambridge?
”I have very varied tasks. I’m employed as a scientist, so much of my time is spent in the lab. I’m also responsible for planning the work for guest scientists and students. But most of my work consists of planning what areas we should research, and how to go about it.”

 

”Another important task as a scientist is to write applications to secure new funds for the lab. And then I go to conferences, to get inspiration within my field, but also to communicate our research results to other scientists and possibly find new collaboration partners.”

 

Did your education prepare you well for working life?
”Yes, I think so. When I started here, at one of the world’s best universities, I was a little nervous about whether I could live up to the standards or become “the slow one in the class”. But the level of my education and the fact that I have spent plenty of time in the lab during my education has given me a professional confidence that has made it easy for me to settle in – even at one of the world’s best universities.”

 

What have you learned during your education that you can use in your work?
”A lot. In addition to the professional skills in research, I have learned to cooperate with people with very different backgrounds, both culturally and professionally. It has also taught me the analytical way of thinking that you need in natural science where you need to communicate your field of expertise on many levels – from laymen to the super nerds.
 
What is the most important experience you have brought with you?
”The courage to ask an expert’s advice. To ask someone who knows more, is the quickest way to get on with one’s work. And the bonus is, when you suddenly become the one that others seek advice from!”
 
Do you have any advice for present students?
”Go get them! It’s supposed to be fun!”