What Suze says about the Master's in Bioinformatics

Suze from the Netherlands – Alumna and PhD student

The programme and the teaching style

Why did you choose this programme? 

"I chose this programme because I wanted to bring together my biology background and my computational knowledge. I wanted to merge them so I thought learning how to integrate biological data and computational science would be good. I knew Sweden had quite a good technical scene. The impression I got from the Nordics in general, was also that their healthcare databases are quite strong and I thought this would be good for research and hopefully also translated into the programme."

What do you think about your programme? Did it live up to your expectations?

"Yes, I enjoyed it. When I came to Sweden and chose the programme, I was a little bit unsure if it would be a bit too easy because I had already done a Master’s. However, it turned out to be perfect as I hadn't done anything like integrating biology and computing science before. I also got to learn some new computational parts. Everyone on the programme was super nice. We were a really good group of students with great and helpful professors as well as guest lecturers."

What was the best thing about your programme?

"I think it was the friendly and nice environment we had. The studying and learning in the programme were well-balanced so I could still enjoy my time in Sweden. Except for the first course, I never felt particularly stressed about deadlines or such during the programme. It was always very reasonable. What I also liked and learned about the programme was that you got to know a lot of people in the bioinformatics field. Most bioinformaticians are spread out across faculties so you get to know lots of people in different networks."

Why should prospective students choose this programme?

"Because of the balance. There is quite a high demand for bioinformaticians and it is quite easy to find a Master’s thesis or support, as well as a PhD position. I think that is a good thing to know. You should choose the programme because you will gain so much knowledge. I learned a lot about biology and bioinformatics but also a lot about programming."

 What was your favourite course during your studies and why?

"I don't know if they still teach it, but it was the Modelling Biological Systems course. I enjoyed that one a lot because it was taught by a very nice professor who explained everything very clearly. I liked looking at the mathematical point of view of biological data."

What did you think of the teaching style at Lund University?

"I thought it had a good balance. I liked doing a lot of projects as I gained a lot of problem-solving skills. The fact that we took one course per month was also good as it allowed you to fully focus on the project or course at hand. 

When it comes to the professors, it was very easy to reach out. However, with a lot of projects going on, it was a bit tricky to find the right group to work with at times. The fact that the first year of the programme comprises 45 ECTS course projects followed by a Master's thesis (or an alternative project and thesis), creates a demand for approximately 20 students to find both a project and thesis topic concurrently. The challenge lay in the limited availability of projects within the Faculty of Science, as opposed to the Faculty of Medicine where most projects were readily accessible. To address this, the programme coordinator organised a day of talks to present potential projects, allowing students to contact project leaders afterwards. In response, a group of students, including both current and previous cohorts, organised a poster session the following year to enhance interaction among students."

PhD studies and career opportunities

What does your PhD programme look like and how did you find out about it?

"I am doing a PhD in breast cancer research at the Faculty of Medicine at Lund University. I heard about the position through a friend who got a PhD offer and I discovered what they were looking for was similar to what I did for my Master’s thesis, so I decided to apply. At first, I did some short projects with the Faculty and was later hired as a PhD student. If there had been a PhD offer in the Bioinformatics (Biology) department, I might have applied but there wasn’t. When Covid 19 struck, I decided to stay in Sweden. Although I am not pursuing my PhD in the department where I did my Master's, I still do some teaching there which I enjoy."

Would you say your Master’s programme prepared you for this PhD?

"I don't know if one can ever be fully prepared for a PhD, but yes, I would say my Master’s thesis prepared me for the relevant parts of it. I did biology research for my thesis where I looked at oat seeds and used deep learning to segment images. It was the technique that I picked up that my current group at the Faculty of Medicine was looking for. This technique was something that could be applied to different data as it is very transferable. In my current work with breast cancer data, I work with a specific subtype of breast cancer, where we look at images and try to see how many specific cells of a specific cell type are present in the tissue. I get the images, write scripts to analyse those images, and then do subsequent data analysis afterwards. The programme prepared me for this role as I am utilising the techniques I learned in my Master's thesis."

Would you say there are more career options for people who study this programme?

"Yes, I think there are a lot of options out there for bioinformaticians. Again, I'm in academia so it is difficult for me to talk about the industry in general but I think you can go into plant-based fields for example or you can go towards the pharma side. PhDs and research in this field are super big. So, there are quite some options. If you also decide that biology is not for you, you still learn quite a lot of programming as well. You could also move into data science, which is needed in nearly all industries at this point."

Thoughts on living in Sweden and advice for future students

As a PhD student, what do you do in your spare time? Are you involved in any extracurricular activities?

"Not anymore, but I used to be part of this Regional Student Group for Bioinformaticians. We first had to do it locally and then more nationally. I was also very active in my student sport, rowing. Now I have sort of graduated from the students’ part here, but I'm still active in the rowing club on the board."

What was it like to be an international student at Lund University?

"It's very easy in a lot of ways because everyone speaks English. So, language-wise, I didn’t feel like there was any barrier. You can easily join the Nations (student-only social clubs) and get involved in their numerous activities as an international student. You don't have to learn Swedish, although it could be beneficial if you want to stay and work in Sweden after your studies."

Do you have any advice for other students who are considering coming to Lund?

"Start to research housing options early. Once that's sorted, you can relax and enjoy most things here. I enjoyed the Orientation Week where you get to meet new people through social, cultural and practical activities. Even if you don't end up hanging out with those people long-term, it is a nice way to get into the social environment. I also recommend you to go to the Nations and to join the rowing club."

What have you liked most about living in Sweden, and what have you learned from living in Sweden?

"Coming from the Netherlands, I find nature to be a lot more accessible here than it is back home. That's one of the reasons I moved. I also think the work-life balance here is good."