Meet Henry, Masters Student in Biochemistry

My name is Henry Annecke and I’m a British student taking the master’s programme in Biochemistry here at Stockholm University — after having studied physics at undergraduate level in Berlin. Applying to the programme was the next logical step for me once I had completed my Erasmus research internship here at the department.

Everyone was friendly and I realised there was a wide range of possibilities available in terms of interesting research groups, fields, and courses.

Biophysical chemistry is the most interesting aspect of chemistry for me as it presents the opportunity to learn about the fundamental molecular principles behind protein dynamics in an interdisciplinary manner, and having come from a different field, I like this approach.

This programme has been the perfect transition into life sciences, and a lot of students have different backgrounds. During the programme, which has a focus on applicable research skills, we have had various lab work. One highlight of this was a computer based bioinformatic lab in which we analysed protein evolutionary homology. After learning much about protein function it was interesting to see how this fits into an evolutionary perspective and to do so using the latest software. Another highlight was in the Structural Biochemistry course in which we crystallised a protein, collected X-Ray diffraction data on the crystal, and then learnt how to build a 3D protein structure from the data. Seeing how a protein structure is produced from start to finish was really enjoyable.

Generally, the courses are designed with a lot of hands-on time which means you learn a lot. The lecturers themselves have unique approaches to teaching which are both refreshing and engaging, and which encourage independent thought and problem solving. Alongside this the campus and Stockholm itself are great places to be and live so if you’re considering applying, I’d recommend it.

Best of luck!

Henry