Anna-Lynn Wegener (Germany)
Hi! My name is Anna-Lynn. I am 25 years old and I have been working at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory in Heidelberg, Germany, for two years now.
I cannot really say it was my childhood dream to become a scientist. At school I liked many subjects, which made it difficult to choose what to study at university. Finally, I decided to do science, because I thought it is easier to pursue interests like languages, literature or philosophy in my spare time. To keep up with science and its rapid progress you have to dedicate your career to it, I thought.
Luckily, I could postpone the decision of which science to study for another while because I found a course that offered a broad education in all natural sciences. At the University of Cambridge I started off studying biology, chemistry, physics and maths and specialised only later on in the field of neurosciences - the science that studies the brain and the nervous system.
While I very much enjoyed the theory of biology I realized quickly that working in a lab wasn't for me. I liked thinking, discussing, and writing about science much more than actually 'doing' it. I have also always had a passion for writing and a masters course called 'Science culture and communication' offered the perfect chance to bring these interests together. The class taught me to explain science to people without scientific background and to write about it so it becomes interesting and understandable.
And this is what I am still doing today. At the European Molecular Biology Laboratory I am now working in the press office. As the press officer I work in-between scientists and media. Whenever there is a new discovery at the institute I write an article about it and send it to journalists, who use it as a basis for newspaper articles, radio programmes or TV shows. For me this means having the best of both worlds: science and writing. My job gives me the chance to stay up-to-date with the newest scientific developments and no day passes without me learning something new. There is also a strong social aspect to my work; I meet many fascinating people and interrogate them about their research, their ideas and their lives. Working in an international institute, where people from more than 60 countries come together, I can practice the languages I learned at school on a daily basis and I get to see different parts of the world travelling to scientific conferences.
I am glad that I found the perfect mix for me and I hope my example shows that science can open many doors that lead into different directions - it might even be the key to yours, too.