My time at Prior’s Field laid the groundwork for my subsequent academic endeavours, particularly thanks to the commitment from the amazing biology teachers.

After leaving Prior’s Field I read biological sciences at The University of Exeter in Devon. There I decided that microbiology suited me the best and I asked a professor to host me in his lab as a Master's by Research student. Here I found my passion for practical lab work, particularly as being dyslexic I always found timed essay exams difficult. I joined leading scientists to investigate how a disease, which devastates cereal crops, remodels itself to infect rice leaves using techniques including genetic modification. 

After completing my Master's degree I was offered a PhD position funded by the university and DSTL (Science arm of the Ministry of Defence). I pursued an exciting project investigating antibiotic resistant bacteria at the single cell level using special devices called microfluidics and high-powered microscopes. I also worked with a bacterium related to plague to test decontamination techniques. Alongside my research, I taught undergraduates and masters' students, attended international conferences, published scientific papers and conducted science outreach to schools and the local community, which was very fulfilling. 

I thoroughly enjoyed my PhD even through the inevitable hurdles, from experiments not working, problem solving, to the Covid-19 pandemic forcing our laboratories to close. Thankfully, research is a very collaborative process and with help from fellow scientists and the exciting work made overcoming these challenges enjoyable. 

I am currently working in collaboration with Oxford University as a postdoctoral researcher. However, the skills I obtained during my PhD are very transferable, so I am excited to see what the future brings.