Hi everyone, I’m Zoya (click here for instagram) and I am currently a Biomedical Science student about to begin my third year of undergrad this September! Throughout my second year of study I’ve had the opportunity to learn about a whole range of subject areas from pharmacology to molecular biology to human anatomy. My day to day tends to differ in terms of timetabled activities including working in the lab, attending lectures, cadaveric dissections, tutor meetings etc. The days I look forward to the most are often those where I have Human Anatomy and dissections because after being in the dissection room, no textbook can ever compare, and because of that I’ve decided to take you along with me on one of these days.
6:30am – As a commuting student, I leave my house a little earlier than you may expect to get to university for a 9am lecture. The commute is only short assuming you’re able to actually make it onto the train which is quite often packed like sardines. So at 6:30am I wake up, run to the bathroom before my sibling and parents and leave for the train station at 7:30am.
7:52am – On the train on my way to university. Today was one of the rare miracles where the train was unbelievably quiet.
9:00am – First lecture of the day. Today’s lecture was about analysis of gene function including the protein purification using the antibody-affinity method and later visualisation using GFP. I chop and change how I take notes in lectures depending on the content but today I had the lecture slides on my laptop and typed notes under each slide based on what my lecturer was saying.
10:14am – I have an hour free before the next lecture which means I’m on my way to the library and taking this time to go through the notes I just made, make sense of them and try to make them more suitable for future revision. For me this involves, making flashcards, posters or just bullet pointing information under each slide.
11:16am – Early lunch. On alternating Wednesdays and Thursdays I have an early lunch because I know I won’t get the chance to eat later on between anatomy briefings and dissections. Today I’m also taking the time to read a paper about DNA mismatch repair which is linked to an essay I am in the process of writing.
12:00pm – Briefing for anatomy dissection. I jotted down some extremely messy and just about legible notes throughout this briefing with important facts to note and things to look out for in the upcoming dissection. These sessions prove to me that it’s not necessary for notes to always be made beautifully!
1:30pm – Time to enter the dissection room. It’s strictly no phones or devices with cameras allowed in the corridor or the room in accordance with the Human Tissue Act, hence the picture of my lab coat only! Today we continued with our dissection of the abdominal cavity, mainly focusing on the small and large intestine and the distinguishable differences between the two.
4:30pm – After finishing with dissections, I’m on my way back to the train station. When I get home I’ll shower, pray, have a snack and then carry on with some work. Sometimes I choose to stay at university to work because it can be easier to work in a university environment with less distractions than at home, but today I decided to leave early.
6:00pm – Currently finishing off my lecture notes from earlier today to clarify any misunderstandings by doing some extra reading and making them simpler to understand. After this, I plan on skimming through my practical handbook to read over the objectives and tasks for tomorrows lab work.
8:00pm – Food time! Living with your family whilst attending university has the benefit of being able to eat together with my family in the evenings.
9:00pm – With food eaten and cleared away, its time to read and make some brief notes for my essay on the molecular mechanisms underpinning Lynch Syndrome.
10:47pm – Around this this time I’m way too tired to even focus on anything I’m doing so its officially time for bed. I realised during my first year at uni that forcing myself to stay awake when I’m tired leads to A) staying awake for no reason because I’m too sleepy to do anything productive and B) not concentrating properly the next day because I’m tired. So I’ve learnt to shut the books (or the laptop) and get a good nights sleep.
This was an extremely quick run through of some aspects of one of my typical uni days. Sometimes my days are much more exciting and involve interesting work in the labs and varying projects, but I wanted to give you an insight into a typical and average day. I often share what I get up to over on my Instagram – @thesciencestudentt and will also soon be reactivating my blog! I hope you all enjoyed this quick run through and I’m looking forward to reading more “Day in the Life of…” posts on dr.ofwhat!
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