Student blogs

Tjäna and hey all, it’s Wendy and I am a new blogger in the DA team. My first month at KI has been filled with a whirlwind of emotions – excitement, nervousness, overwhelm, joy, hectic moments, and inspiration. Starting at the Bioentrepreneurship program (MBE) at the top medical university has been a dream come true. In this blog, I’ll walk you through the highlights of my first month. 

Welcome to KI: A new chapter

Moving to a big city like Stockholm is bound to be hectic and stressful. Even though I’m from the Helsinki metropolitan area in Finland, I had grown accustomed to the calm, small-town vibe in Western Sweden, where I lived for three years while completing my Bachelor’s in Molecular Bioscience. I remember making numerous checklists months before introduction week, ensuring I had everything in order and had noted down all the important dates and information.

As introduction week started, I remember it being nerve-wracking but mostly exciting. The student union Medicinska Förening (MF) welcomed us to the Solna campus, where I will be spending most of my two years, with a campus tour and a BBQ mingle. I had visited Stockholm multiple times before, but I had never seen the Karolinska Institute Campus in person. And Yes, it is as beautiful as it looks in the pictures, particularly the architecture of the Aula Medicum building. Meeting my classmates was what I was most looking forward to. Thanks to the Goin platform, I had the opportunity to mingle with my classmates online beforehand, so meeting them during introduction week felt more natural and not at all awkward.

The introduction week was packed with activities organized by both KI and the student union. KI offered lectures on essential topics such as well-being, studying at KI, and an introduction to KI’s gym. The week concluded with the official welcome ceremony at Aula Medicum. Between these events, MF took charge of social activities, including a city stroll, a picnic day, and parties. Within the MBE program, the second-year students arranged an international dinner party, where everyone brought a staple dish or snack from their home country. This was a great and fun way to bond and get to know each other better.

Navigating through my first month in MBE

The MBE program kicked off with our own introduction day where we got to learn more about our program’s structure as well as mingle. It was fascinating to see how diverse our classroom is, with students coming from various backgrounds and careers within the life science industry.

I’m not going to lie, transitioning from a week full of fun activities and events to studying was definitely not easy. Also, coming from a very science-heavy background, it was challenging to adjust to the first courses of the semester. We started with Theory in Bioentrepreneurship and Industrial Management, which introduced many new concepts and was surprisingly fast-paced. This turned out to be quite overwhelming in terms of workload (more details on the first semester courses in later blog posts). However, my colleagues are truly amazing and everyone is so supportive, making it much easier to get through the first month.

Another cool aspect of KI is that the Solna campus is situated right in the heart of the life science hub, where a myriad of events are organized by different student-led organizations. I attended my first consulting event, arranged by Synapse, which was inspiring and helped me learn more about the field. I’m eagerly looking forward to participating in more events and discovering various roles within the industry.

Last days of summer in Stockholm

Stockholm is an extremely beautiful city! Luckily for us, the weather was still pretty good during mid Autumn☀️. The city reminds me so much of Helsinki that it feels like I’m not far away from home. However, heads up: it’s a pretty expensive city to live in, so as a student, budgeting is key. That said, you can still enjoy the city’s delicious cafés and food spots! A memorable moment was when my classmates and I celebrated National Cinnamon Bun Day by trying out delicious cinnamon buns together in town.

In addition to exploring the city, there’s an active student life, which I was positively surprised by. While there aren’t as many events during the rest of the semester compared to introduction week, there are still gatherings like “sittnings” (informal dinner parties) to look forward to.

This first month has wrapped up wonderfully, despite all the hecticness. I’ve made new connections and memories, and attended inspiring events and talks. This is only the beginning, and I’m excited for what the next two years will bring. I’m also looking forward to sharing more of my journey and insights, and hopefully offering valuable tips. So stay tuned for more! 🙂