Karolina a facility manager in SciLifeLab was interviewed as part of Humans of KI series
Cover Stories

Karolina Wallenborg: “It’s especially rewarding to help researchers with their projects”

[dropcap]H[/dropcap]aving completed a systems biology post-doc in the US, Seattle, Karolina appreciates the accepting working environment in Sweden. “I think here at KI everyone’s opinion matters. There is more hierarchy in the US, so if you are somewhere up on the ladder, your opinions matter more.” In addition, she admires seeing students and professors intermingling and having the possibility to regularly listen to the best speakers.

Being part of academia, but not driving her own research, she has landed on a fulfilling yet challenging position. In fact, she is more interested in helping labs carry out their individual projects.

As a facility manager at the Eucaryotic Single Cell Genomics Facility at Scilifelab, she communicates with customers, explains the facility services and assists choosing which of the different methods could help to answer their research questions. “I think it’s especially rewarding to help researchers because some of them come to us with really challenging projects but they don’t know where to start.”

Karolina finds observing people very inspiring. “I like to imagine what they’re doing or where they are heading. I think it’s an alive feeling.”

[box type=”shadow” align=”alignleft” ][dropcap]“[/dropcap] She sometimes starts her day during the week in a cafe with a cup of coffee working by herself. “Just reading an old-fashioned printed newspaper, not so common anymore.”

 [/box]

 

[divider]

Head over here for more information about research funding and documentation.

This is a piece for the Humans of KI series published in the third issue of Medicor.

Follow the rest of the series from here.

[divider]
Text and interview: Marianna Tampere
Photo: Oliver Mortusewicz
Published in Medicor 2017#3

 

One thought on “Karolina Wallenborg: “It’s especially rewarding to help researchers with their projects”

Leave a Reply