After my MSc I plan to pursue a PhD in Cancer Biology

"The education offered by the British academic institutions has always gained international reputation encouraging a large number of students from different parts of the world to pursue their education in UK. After completing my Masters degree in Biotechnology from Union Christian College, Kerala, I decided to pursue a second Masters in Biomedical Science from an international university to attain research experience in the field of Cancer biology in which I would like to pursue a PhD after the completion of the course.

"In 2017, I applied to the Masters in Biomedical Science program at the University of Sheffield which is a one-year postgraduate course focussed on exploring human health, diseases and treatment strategies. I chose the University of Sheffield because of the ranking of the department and the university, the wide choice of modules the department offers, and the presence of world class scientists who are experts in their own field of research. In 2018, I was nominated by the University of Sheffield for a British Council India 70th Anniversary Scholarship which was awarded to 100 Indian women who received offers from UK universities to pursue Masters in STEM subjects. The scholarship amount valued 30000 GBP will covers my tuition expenses during the course.

"The Masters in Biomedical Science offered by the University of Sheffield is one of the few programmes in the UK that offers Cancer Biology as a lecture module which really captured my attention before applying for this course. The program combines both theory and practice where the students get the opportunity to receive top notch training on facilities like RNAi Screening, single cell omics and electron microscopy facilities. In addition, the seminars given by both internal and external speakers help students to know about various developments happening in other research areas other than their area of interest.

"As a part of the course I have taken Cancer Biology and Modelling Human Disease as the lecture modules and Developmental Genetics and Neuroscience Techniques as the practical modules. Through these modules, I have had a chance to learn technologies and concepts in the field of Biomedical Science and the laboratory research project in the final semester helps students to handle individual research projects in different labs under the guidance of a world class research team. I have been doing my research project under the supervision of Professor Carl Smythe, Professor of Cell Biology and his PhD student, Laura Maple since February which will be completed by July 2019.

"My future plan after the completion of the course is to pursue a PhD in Cancer Biology in one of the top-ranking research institutes in the world. Currently I am in the process of applying to various PhD programs and I hope that the research experience I gain from the University of Sheffield will help me to achieve my career goal in near future.

"Everything about the university starting from the library to sports facilities to medical and accommodation services have been managed by experts to ensure that the students receive one of the best experiences of their lifetime at the university.

Bhadra Kerala Varma

MSc Biomedical Science

"Everything about the university starting from the library to sports facilities to medical and accommodation services have been managed by experts to ensure that the students receive one of the best experiences of their lifetime at the university.

"Sheffield is a great city. What I love about Sheffield is that it is one of the safest and friendly places to live in. The locals are so considerate and friendly and there are many good cafes and restaurants around the city which serve excellent quality food. Sheffield is also famous for the amount of green spaces it has like the Peak District National Park, Rivelin Valley park and beautiful gardens where students can go for trekking, cycling or walks.

"I am extremely glad that I chose the University of Sheffield for my postgraduate studies."