Sara Mehrabi, Iran (part 2)

Master’s student Sara Mehrabi will spend the summer in Iran with her family. “We will do some travelling together, maybe Turkey, Malaysia, or somewhere in Iran,” Sara says. “I am really looking forward to being home, spending time with my friends.” Shopping, picnics, going to restaurants and resting are also on her list of summer-time activities at home. Sara will be in Iran for nearly two months before returning to Stockholm at the end of August.

As far as Sara is concerned, life in Sweden is good. “I love Stockholm,” she says. “I think it’s the combination of forest and water right here in the city. You’re always close to nature. This is my first exposure to the Swedish spring, the long days and explosion of plant life. I called my mother one night just to tell her that the sun was still shining at 9 o’clock. My family had no ideas about Sweden before, the life here or the beauty of it. Now they want to come here, to see for themselves.”

Sara’s study focus is science so words like symbiosis and micro-organisms, plant intelligence and the environment are part of her everyday vocabulary. She spends at least a part of every day in the lab. “There’s no set time for laboratory work,” Sara explains. “It’s not like being an engineering or sociology student, where you can plan your day. You must work until the experiment is complete. One thing I have learned is patience. One day everything is working right, the next it’s all wrong and you must start over.” She knows it is all part of the scientific process. “I stay calm now,” she says.

Sara looks forward to continuing her studies in the fall. “My professors have made the difference,” she says. “They don’t disappoint. They always encourage us to try it again. It’s never bad or wrong.”

Text and interview: Sarah Hollister

Read previous interviews in the series:

• www.su.se/english/study/student-profiles/sara-mehrabi
• www.su.se/english/about/news-and-events/new-masters-students-orientation-day