Congratulations to the Class of 2019, who graduated last week from Queen Mary University of London. To round off our graduation campaign, we spoke to School of Biological and Chemical Sciences / School of Medicine and Dentistry alumna Tasqeen Ahmed, who has some fantastic advice for graduates, considering a career in the Civil Service.
Tasqeen Ahmed, Policy and Public Affairs Officer, Campaign for Science and Engineering (Cancer and Molecular Pathology and Genomics MSc, 2016)
My four years at Queen Mary laid a brilliant foundation for my future. I studied BSc Biochemistry and undertook my final year project at a biotechnology company, BioMoti, focused on engineering cancer therapeutics. This fuelled my interest in the field of cancer research, which led me to study MSc Cancer & Molecular Pathology and Genomics at Barts Cancer Institute. No other university provided such a breadth of modules taught by leading experts!
Whilst at Queen Mary, I took advantage of the many great opportunities including interning at BP, hosting a weekly radio show for Quest Radio, working as a student ambassador, and interning at Pfizer through QMentoring. Not only did this add a lot of colour to my CV, but also allowed me to develop soft skills like teamwork and communication which strengthened my application for the Science and Engineering Fast Stream.
As part of the Fast Stream, I’m a member of the Queen Mary Outreach team and regularly attend panel events on campus to raise awareness of the Fast Stream, support students with applications and provide careers advice. I am forever grateful for my time at Queen Mary and am more than happy to provide guidance and support to students!