Lisa Rodermund

BSc Biochemistry and Cell Biology | 2016

Nationality: German
Graduate School: University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
Current Position: Postdoctoral Research Associate, University of Oxford, UK
Position at time of interview: Second year PhD student in Biochemistry at the Department of Biochemistry, University of Oxford I am currently working in the field of epigenetics trying to elucidate key processes in X chromosomal inactivation with the help of superresolution microscopy. I am fully funded by the Medical Research Council of the U.K. and the Department of Biochemistry.

Despite being a small institution, I found that Jacobs University is known to many prestigious graduate institutions in my field and has a reputation of conferring great practical skills to the students.

Lisa Rodermund

What do your days look like currently?

I usually work from 9 am to 7 pm and spend most of my time in the laboratory or at the microscope. In the evening, I often attend social events or sports at my college (St. Anne’s). As one of the social secretaries at the college, I also help with the organization of these events.

What attracted you to Jacobs out of all the other possibilities you were considering?

Jacobs provided the opportunity to study in English and live in an English-speaking community. This was very important to me because I believe the ability to communicate science internationally is key to successful research. Also, I was very excited by the prospect of living on campus together with people from so many countries and different cultural backgrounds, which was extremely enriching and would not have been possible at public universities in Germany.

What did Jacobs do for you that you were not expecting?

Although I expected the professor to student ratio to be low, I was surprised by the close and highly supportive relationships formed between students and teachers at Jacobs University. Not only was this extremely helpful for personal career advice, but it also allowed students to start doing practical research very early on. Despite being a small institution, I found that Jacobs University is known to many prestigious graduate institutions in my field and has a reputation of conferring great practical skills to the students.