Summer Class of 2020

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!

I graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Master's in pharmacy in 2014 and subsequently began working as a community pharmacist in the Greater Belfast area. My career began to take an unusual turn when I got involved with a small startup company who developed a novel blood glucose monitor for diabetic patients. From here, my interest in diabetes was piqued and I applied for a PhD project (somewhat optimistically!) in the Diabetes Research Group at Ulster. Nearly four years later, I'm still there working as a postdoctoral researcher. Not bad considering I never thought I had a chance of getting a PhD spot!

My time within the DRG has been, and still is, fantastic. I've made life-long friends (and surprisingly few enemies!) who have been patient, helpful and a joy to collaborate with. I couldn't have got through it without them (you know who you are). Likewise, the guidance from my supervisors, Prof. Peter Flatt and Dr. Nigel Irwin, has been invaluable. I'm probably most proud of the fact that I came into the DRG with one publication behind me, but at the end of my PhD I currently have closer to 10 first author publications. The first of these was published on my birthday also, so I will always remember the celebrations with my lab partners that evening (with only a few scenes missing...). The moment I will never forget is the moment the nerves settled in my PhD viva and I finally had the self-validation of the 3 years of hard-work that had gone before. My external examiner was an intimidating figure, with ~13,000 publications to his name, so its easy to feel inadequate! However, by the time the viva was over I feel I had earned his respect, something which gave me a lot of confidence to carry forward into my career. The beginning of my PhD was probably the most stressful part of it. There was a feeling of not knowing what I was doing or where my research it was going. If I could speak to myself at this time, I'd like to tell myself that it will all click eventually, that the frustration and hard work will pay off. I know he wouldn't have listened though, so I'd probably just buy the poor guy a beer, he'll be fine in the end!