{credit}Image courtesy of Lisa Michelle Restelli{/credit}

Introducing Lisa Michelle Restelli, one of the winners of the London Naturejobs Career Expo journalism competition

Lisa Michelle Restelli completed a masters degree in medical, molecular and cellular biotechnologies at San Raffaele University in Milan, Italy, and she is now a second-year PhD candidate at the University of Basel in Switzerland. Her work focuses on mitochondrial morphology and its relationship to the central nervous system, both in health and in disease. Outside the lab, she enjoys cooking, reading, and travelling, preferably in combination.

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“Acceptance rates for grants in Switzerland are 30-40%,” proclaimed my prospective boss  in February 2012 as I interviewed for a PhD position in neurobiology across the Alps. “We should get your project funded in no time.” As it turns out, it was actually 51% at the time for the Swiss National Science Foundation. These optimistic figures certainly had a lot to do with my final decision to move to Switzerland to pursue a PhD, closely followed by chocolate. Even as an undergrad, I could perceive the steady uncertainty of the worldwide funding situation, so I was eager to position myself in what seemed to be a safe haven.

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