Study with us

Faiz Haque is a Masters student from Wigan in the United Kingdom. When applying to Stockholm University, Brexit was in full flow and Faiz saw it as an opportunity to attend a school outside of the UK while no limitations were in place.  

– I really enjoy studying Analytical Chemistry at Stockholm University. I like how each individual course brings about its own separate challenges, Faiz says. 

“The variability of chemistry is what makes it such a great subject”

Aida Bertolotti is a student from Barcelona who is currently doing her Master in Biochemistry at Stockholm University. According to Aida, the best thing about studying in Sweden is the close interaction between students and professors. And of course, the fika!  

“I like the proximity in which professors treat students, how they make you feel comfortable” 

Despina Kapsitidou, a 24-year old chemistry student from Greece, is taking her Master degree in Biochemistry at Stockholm University. Her goal is to continue as a PhD student and work in research about the Alzheimer disease. 

"A well-known university in a beautiful city makes Stockholm a tempting destination for students!"

Natalia joined us as an Erasmus student from Poland during her bachelor studies. She ended up finishing her bachelor at SU, staying for her master and is now doing her PhD in sustainable materials chemistry. We asked her what she thinks of studying at SU:

"The SU Chemistry Section offers so many fantastic opportunities for students. Everyone is being treated fairly and equally here. The students are prioritized and individually-approached. Being a foreign student myself I have never experienced anything else than kindness and help from all the professors and administrative staff. I truly recommend studying here!"

Natalia, the Erasmus student who stayed :)

My name is Aitor and I am a 29 years old PhD student at the Organic Department at Stockholm University. Let me tell you a bit about myself and how I ended up at this Department!

I jumped into the Chemistry world around 12 years ago form now, when I enrolled in a 5-year Degree in Chemistry at Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Spain (2007-2012). During that time I studied all the different fields in Chemistry, what allowed me to have preference for some of them over others. I personally enjoyed Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry the most and a desire of expanding my knowledge and continuing with further studies started to grow in me.

It was when I finished my Degree that, due to difficulties finding scholarships and fully funded programs in my home country, I decided to do a more practical Masters Degree in Chemical Engineering, with the aim of finding a job right afterwards. Everything was as planned and everything seemed to be sorted out, but just after 6 months working in a Chemical Company, and realising that that lifestyle was not made for me, I decided to take a break and improve my English skills, hoping that it would help in the near future apply for further studies abroad.

Floorball and the Nobel Prize
After spending two years in Sydney, Australia, I felt ready and started searching around (online) for some programmes in different universities in Europe. I have to say that thanks to the sport I have been practising my whole life (floorball, or innebandy in Swedish) I had had the chance to get to know quite a few nordic people, and had some close Swedish friends. Their way of thinking, behaving and caring about others always kept my attention, so I wondered, could this be my last chance to move there and get to know a bit more about the Nordic culture? So I started looking for good programmes in Chemistry in Finland, Sweden, Norway and Denmark. After making a large list of possible destinations, I proceeded to rank them, based on their reputation and location.

As you may know, Stockholm is commonly known for the Nobel Prize Awards in Science (Chemistry), which pushed this city to the top of my ranking list. After checking the different research groups and Professors at the Department of Organic Chemistry (with very good reputation, being among the world´s top 100 universities), I decided to give it a try and apply for the Master's Programme in Organic Chemistry, at Stockholm University. I was accepted and I did not think about it twice, I moved straight away back from Sydney to start this exciting Programme in September 2016 with the aim of finishing it and being eligible for a PhD position. 

Project work and PhD studies
The first course I read as part of the Master's Programme was Advanced Organic Synthesis, and although each student had a different background, the Professors managed to make every student feel comfortable and cared for. This helped each and every of us keep motivation for the following courses. Although the Master's Programme is planned to take two full years (a first year of theory and a second and last year of practical project work), after reading my second course, Organometallic Chemistry, I decided to apply for the project work in Professor Belén Martín-Matute´s research group. I was accepted to do a 1-year project group in the topic "Bifunctional NHC-Ir(III) complexes for catalysis". I read the rest of the theoretical courses while doing the project, which I defended in October 2017. I am very excited to say that right after completion of the Master’s Degree, I applied for a PhD vacancy in the same research group, to continue with the research I had been performing. Happily, I was offered the place and started my PhD studies 😊.

After one year, the results that I started working on when I came as a Master student have been further developed and got published, being now part of my PhD thesis. I am very happy to continue with my formation in this amazing group, and continuously getting to know new interesting people and very well known Professors in the field. Doing the PhD at this department also provides me the opportunity to attend the Nobel Laureates lectures every year, and in some cases, have short conversations with them! Something I could have never think of years ago.

Nothing better than a "fika"
There are still years of hard work and teaching in order to finish my PhD, but the motivation increases every day thanks to everyone at the Department (specially to Prof. Belén Martín -Matute and the whole research group), who help you feel welcome and confortable. There is nothing better than a "fika break" (Swedish coffee break) with nice people when busy times come! I fully recommend it!!

Daniel Martinez Molina's interest in nutrition led him to the Bachelor's programme in nutriton - a program given in collaboration between SU and KI. "Pretty soon I realized that a solid basic education was necessary to really understand what, how and why processes take place in the body", says Daniel, who moved on to do a master in biochemistry followed by a PhD. Today, Daniel is the Chief Scientific Officer and head of research at the company he co-founded.

"I had aha-moments all the time during my studies"

Growing up in Spain, Lola Herman dreamed of becoming a ballet dancer. But her passion for making a difference and helping people lead her elsewhere. More specifically, to the Department of Biochemistry and Physics at Stockholm University. She is now working in medical affairs, being a part of bringing patients new therapies and hope for the future.

Meet Lola, "Biochemistry is a tool to understand the "why" behind diseases, potential treatments and cures"

After an exciting year with the Swedish Doping Agency, Lovisa missed the aspect of personal encounters.

Today she works as an Account Manager and is responsible for the sales of consumables and instruments for sample preparation – it’s the best of two worlds, says Lovisa.

Read more about Lovisa, and how a master from SU can prepare you for a very rewarding career in specialised sales