Libuše Janská

I was a fortunate student growing up, because I had amazing biology teachers, who introduced me to modern science early on in my education. Over the years, I grew very fond of biology and set out on the path to become a scientist. I wanted to have a deep understanding of biology, but also of a broader range of science and non-science topics and so the American university-type education system became very appealing to me. Combined with the prestige and the opportunities available after completing a degree, acceptance to a US university became my goal. After the Bakala foundation supported this dream of mine, I felt encouraged to apply to numerous universities and eventually got accepted to New York University. Now as a third-year student, I am starting to see the pay-off of choosing the path with more hurdles. I am majoring in Biology, whilst getting a minor in Computer Science, which is really expanding my knowledge base and building my connections with both departments. I am working in an exciting new laboratory (Carmofon Lab), where I have my own project, but also participate in larger scale projects attempting to understand multi-cellular organization and metabolic interactions in cancers. As I am nearing the end of my bachelor's studies, I will be applying to various PhD programs in the following year. I hope to continue my education in an exciting and innovative environment, where I could do cutting-edge interdisciplinary research.