I was drawn to this project for a number of reasons: the supervisor is a prominent researcher within his field, I was keen to work on a recently-discovered protein which had not been investigated very much, and I had a strong interest in research that could help to increase out understanding of cancer development.

I became particularly interested in molecular biology during the final year of my degree at Sheffield. Two months after graduating in July 2011, I therefore took up a place on a Masters course at the University of Nottingham (Molecular Genetics and Diagnostics), graduating with Merit in December 2012. I then spent some time at home with my parents whilst applying for jobs, and commenced a role as a Research Assistant at the University of Warwick in a Cancer Research UK-funded lab in April 2013. I was very keen to continue my studies to PhD level and began making applications in September 2014. I was invited to several interviews and was offered a PhD position in Prof. Grant Stewart's lab at the University of Birmingham, which I started in September 2015. After taking six months' maternity leave, I am due to complete my project at the end of March 2019 and plan to submit my thesis by July 2019.

I hope to move into translational research in an industrial setting; I was recently interviewed by a biotechnology start-up company that is searching for novel cancer drug targets by searching within DNA damage response pathways (an area which is highly relevant to my PhD).

If you're passionate about research and are considering undertaking a PhD, that's fantastic - but don't be disheartened if you are not offered a place immediately after completing your undergraduate degree. I was advised by the course lead on my Masters that seeking a post as a Research Assistant in a field that interests you can be a great way to gain further experience and knowledge of the field, and will improve your chances of being offered a PhD place in the future. This was fantastic advice. Also, the fact that I was confident in a research environment at the start of my PhD project meant that I could really make a flying start on my research.