I don’t know where to even start talking about Freiburg. This city has been like a second home to me. My history with Freiburg goes way back, even before I became a digital nomad.
My First Time in Freiburg
After I graduated from Biochemistry, and due to the fact that I didn’t get any of the PhD fellowships that I applied to, I got to know about the possibility of doing an International Master in Biomedical Sciences (IMBS). This master is a joint program between the University of Buenos Aires and the University of Freiburg.
I applied and got accepted for both the program and the scholarship. The master consisted in 6 months in Buenos Aires and 6 months in Freiburg, after which you could choose to do your thesis in either location.
To be honest, I didn’t even know at that time where Freiburg was exactly or what to expect from that experience.
We started the master and flew to Freiburg in a group of 16 amazing people and professionals. Some of them became good friends, and some even life partners. We all explored Freiburg (and many other places in Europe) together.
I think I speak for many of my classmates when I say that we fell in love with Freiburg. During our studies, we visited amazing places, saw both summer and winter, and took part of some high-end academic events.
The day I left Freiburg after my masters, I never thought I will come back but, once again, life proved me wrong. I came back not one but 5 more times.
Two years after we finished the master and already into our PhDs, my boyfriend went back to Freiburg as part of his research project, and I joined him for almost 2 months while writing my dissertation.
Networking and Giving Value
After finishing my PhD and while being -basically- unemployed and a bit lost, I returned to Freiburg again, this time for almost 4 months. At this point of my life I already figured out that I wanted to become a science editor, but was still not quite there yet.
As people say, you have to be in the right place at the right time. During this last stay in Freiburg, my current career as a science editor started to take shape.
It was a rainy day, and I was accompanying a friend to visit her former colleagues at the University and, basically, babysitting her (cuttest) 1-year-old. During that visit, unexpectedly, the former director of the master approached me and offered me to join the editorial board of JOSHA, a raising interdisciplinary journal founded less than 1 year before.
That connection not only led to one of the first steps in my career as a science editor, but also to my professional relationship with the IMBS by teaching scientific communication to the master students in Freiburg 2 years in a row.
After one more social visit, I returned to Freiburg to work as an assistant at the Winter School in 2016 and to teach a scientific communication workshop in 2017, after I already became a digital nomad and was living in Prague.
Highlights
- All these opportunities came to me by being present, networking with people from the scientific community, and giving value. You never know who, when, or how will bring you your next lifetime opportunity.
- Taking part of interdisciplinary programs like the IMBS also open a lot of doors, both in academia and in industry.
- When starting a career path, joining non-profit organizations and/or volunteering within your field can be a quick step towards your dream job.
- Freiburg has both an environment and a scientific community that are ideal for both digital nomads and scientists.
I hope my story has inspired you to consider Freiburg as your next travel destination. I promise you won’t regret it! 😉
Love,
Jenia
PS: If you visit Freiburg, you don’t wanna miss the brunch at Omas Küche!
