Olaug Elisabeth Torheim Bergum
PhD student at NTNU
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How I ended up at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NIPH/FHI)
When I heard about the possibility of having an internship through Digital Life Norway (DLN), I couldn’t do else than apply! Reading about the previous interns’ experiences, it struck me how different topics their industries were covering, yet they all required a biotechnologist. I desired to implement my scientific knowledge to tasks outside academia, as well as be introduced to new methods and topics that I would not encounter in my PhD project. Luckily, I was one of the selected candidates and suddenly I had three exciting months ahead of me.
By working with omics data in R during my PhD, I was amused by the amount of information that can be withdrawn from the data sets, and my enthusiasm to learn more about bioinformatics was boosted. Based on this curiosity, I gained contact with the section of Modelling and Bioinformatics at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NIPH) in Oslo. As well as having a bioinformatic approach, their work involves antibiotic resistance which is the topic of my PhD project. Therefore, working at NIPH would allow me to build on my prior knowledge of antibiotics, and also introduce me to computational work! I established contact with a potential internship supervisor and together we talked about different tasks I could dig into at NIPH. Hoping to pursue this unique opportunity, I presented this option to DLN as an internship outside the proposed companies. The internship was accepted by DLN, and I got even more excited for the upcoming months!
An industry internship is a great way for students with years of abstract knowledge to put it to practical use - NIPH/FHI
Working at NIPH
My curiosity about NIPH grew during the years of the pandemic due to the public involvement of the organization. With excitement, I have been introduced to how NIPH works with up-to-date situations including influenza, corona, and antibiotic resistance. While my team at NTNU consists of people with a molecular biology background, I have worked more transdisciplinary at NIPH. The section on Modelling and Bioinformatics consisted of people with a biological, mathematical, or physics background, as reflected in the broad work of the department involving modeling of transmission of covid, statistical consulting, and analyses of bacterial genomes. With about 1000 employees, NIPH also offers a great working environment with the opportunity to join social gatherings and sports. To my great joy, they even have a post-lunch break with cake every Thursday!
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At NIPH, I performed bioinformatic analysis of next-generation sequencing data. During the three months, I went from being a complete beginner to confidently adding a bioinformatic section to my CV. Besides working on the computer, I have been introduced to a bioinformatician community by participating in journal clubs and a genomics conference hosted at NIPH.
Overall, my stay at NIPH has been a unique opportunity in my career. The internship rewarded me with increased knowledge in computational science and topics that engage me, reinforcing my desired career path of continuing with bioinformatics and antibiotic resistance. I am very grateful for the support from DLN and for allowing me to choose an internship tailored to my desired host institution and learning outcomes.
Centre for Digital Life Norway Industry Internship
PhD students in Norwegian biotechnology have the opportunity to explore career options outside academia through Digital Life Norway’s Internship Program.
New 2023 call is out! Apply by 12 March 2023. ►