Don't worry if you have little experience with the subject

Saskia Vink learnt from her bachelor Biomedical Sciences that a research career was not what she aimed for. Still she assesses her research project for SBM as a useful experience. Her advice: don't worry if you have little experience with the subject of a project.

To find her research project, Saskia searched the website of UMC Utrecht for groups and subjects that interested her. If she was interested, she emailed the researcher concerned. Also she reacted to projects advertised on Konjoin.

Many of her mails received no response, but two did. And while the first was no match, the second one was very much so. When she had a talk with the researchers, she found them very sympathetic. The fact that she had hardly any experience with the topic was no problem, they were confident she would learn, if necessary with a little help.

For her project she evaluated MRI-scans from patients who were treated for cancer with radiotherapy. The effect of the therapy then had to be related with the blood circulation, and therefore oxygenation, of the tumor involved. Her research confirmed that the therapy is less successful when the blood flow is poor.

Saskia really enjoyed the project. “I have always found medical imaging interesting and this was very patient oriented as well. Also I have done much more technical work, like programming.”