Student blogs

Hi everyone! If you’re thinking about applying to the Masters in Molecular Techniques in Life Sciences (MTLS) or you have seen my stories from the KI students Instagram highlights, you might be wondering what a day as an MTLS student looks like. Here, I wanna share with you a day in my life as a 2^nd year student and offer little tidbits of information.

Remember, MTLS is a joint programme across all 3 universities: Karolinska Institutet (KI), Stockholm University (SU) and KTH. In this semester, I am currently attending KTH!

Wake up and transit to SciLifeLab

In the second half of this semester (1^st semester in 2^nd year) we are currently doing two courses that we selected out of three. I personally selected a project course to gain more hands on research experience and the drug development course. In the morning, I start my day off with the Project course! Since the project does not have set “class” or time scheduled, you need to both plan your own time properly but also communicate effectively with your supervisor on a project schedule.

Now that the sun rises only later than 8:00AM, there are times when I leave out and its still dark! It only takes me about 30 mins in total to reach SciLifeLab where I am doing my Project so it is pretty convenient. The public transport in my opinion is fairly reliable and is quite frequent on weekdays. If you are a student within a Student union, you can get the SL student discounted ticket. There are multiple options, such as single tickets, week tickets, but since I have to go to SciLifeLab almost everyday, I buy a longer term ticket.

Project work in the lab: cell culture, lab notebook, etc

I chose to do a project that consisted of wet-lab work and so you can often find me in the lab. I am learning many new techniques such as more cell culture and mass spectrometry. There are times when you don’t even realize how much time has passed by since you’re inside. So, I tell myself that I need to take some quick breaks and go outside if there is any sun (super important!).

On top of the actual lab space, I get my own desk in the office space. This is where I update my digital lab notebook, meet with my supervisor, any desk work and even take zoom classes for my Drug Development course.

Fun fact: Lots of members of our programme are similarly here at SciLifeLab (with even many others on the same floor as me). We can eat lunch together, have a quick coffee together and sometimes I even pass by them just doing my experiment in the lab! Not only are our current members here but also many alumni members, TAs and our professors.

Lunch break and transit home

At around 11:30AM today, I headed back home to eat lunch. In Sweden, I almost always bring lunch to the lab or to class if there is not enough time to go home first. There are microwaves both at SciLifeLab but also in buildings at our schools to accommodate for that.

I’ve taken this time to start learning meal prepping but still often succumb to the question every other day of “What do I bring for lunch tomorrow????” My hack is to make a large portion for dinner and eat the leftovers for lunch but this is not a sustainable method for everyday.

Attending Drug Development lecture

At 13:00PM I walk over to my Drug Development Lecture in the snowy landscape. In KTH, they follow an academic quarter system where they start the course 15 mins later (“a quarter”) than the stipulated course start time. So, I was not late! This system was not implemented at KI during my first semester which goes to show how things can change throughout school to school aside from the school location itself.

This course consists of many guest lectures on the drug development process and we are tasked with a final report, group presentation and then a quiz to apply the material from the lectures. Today, I am going to the lecture in person, which is preferred, but I am gateful that there are online options for most of the classes due to the changing schedule. For example, there are days when I join the class on Zoom from SciLifelab during a long incubation period in my experiment when I cannot make it physically to the lecture in time.

Also fun fact: this course is taken with members of another KTH programme. This is a new experience for me in the programme and the first time we are out of our comfort zone with the familiar faces of our programme mates. I will be starting my group project soon so I will get to properly meet new people which can be nerve wracking but also exciting.

Afternoon fika with bubble tea

After the class (which lasted for only 1 hour today), I hopped on the T-bana at 14:00 PM and went over to the Sergels Torg area for a fika with a programme mate. Since we are often doing our project work or attending class physically at different times, it was nice to catch up with this friend again and hear about their experiences with their project work so far. We had a classic bubble tea and enjoyed the last bit of daylight in the day as the sun quickly set at 15:00PM. Luckily there are lots of Christmas spirit around with lights, decorations and Santa Clauses. This festive mood has really helped me forget about the gloominess of the darkness and kept my mood up.

Swedish class at KTH

I rushed back via the T-bana and attended my Swedish class at 16:00PM which ironically does not follow the academic quarter despite being a KTH course. This is a non-credit bearing course that I can attend as I am a fee-paying student. This is the third and final semester of the course. However, as a member of 3 institutions, you also have access to other Swedish learning resources at KI, SU and at Swedish for Immigrants (SFI). People choose different options with varying levels of proficiency and time commitment. I would argue that my KTH course is not as intensive as the credit bearding course at SU or at SFI but I have heard of my classmates in the Swedish course taking both the KTH course and SFI at the same time.

Final activity of the day: hip-hop dancing

Disclaimer I am not a dancer.

However, I was introduced to the dance societies in both KI and KTH over the year and a half so far. Although I don’t have the skill, I am super appreciative of the beginner friendly sessions at both the KI social dancing and at this KTH hip-hop session. At KI social dancing, there is salsa, bachata and many more different sessions on Mondays every week. It was there that I was introduced to the 19:00PM hip-hop class as well which then moved to the KTH dance society.

It’s an hour of fun movement and energy, and one of the many available healthy activities that you can do at KI.

Going home and ending the night

Today, I admit, was a very packed long day and I only got home at 21:00PM. However, I really wanted to show you what a full day in our Masters could look like. On other days, I am home earlier and, on some days, I get to sit down and do more writing or studying. I end the night with some cozy candles, dinner and a final goodbye to you all!

I hope this has given you a snapshot of all the possibilities of a day in my programme. If you have any questions feel free to send me an email.