Career Focus: Natalie’s story

My name is Natalie, and I’m from Malaysia.
 
I’ve always loved science, and it was one of my dreams to go abroad to study it. Now, I’m a Biomedical Scientist and I get to apply the knowledge I gained during my studies to my everyday work.
 
When I came to England, I was a very shy and anxious person. I never came out of my shell, never talked to anybody.
 
I studied a pathway course at the University of Brighton International College and I had English classes with a teacher who helped me a lot — he was one of my favourite teachers because he offered me so much support.

My pathway course and my teachers prepared me with the knowledge I needed to progress to the University of Brighton. I would say that first year helped me understand a lot of the basics of science.
 
I knew I wanted to be a scientist when I finished my pathway course, but I didn’t know what kind of scientist because there are so many different disciplines, and I didn’t even know working in Diagnosis was possible.

As a Biomedical Scientist, I look at patient samples in suspicion of cancer or other diseases on a daily basis. I help process the samples for the doctors to look at under the microscope.
 
So, it goes from a big macroscopic organ to something very thin under the microscope so that we can see the cells, diagnose the patient, and help them get treatment appropriately.
 
In the future, I would like to be a Consultant Biomedical Scientist. I want to be able to do large dissection of cancer cases and look at them under the microscope. And I want to have the skills to be able to diagnose what cancer it is and choose what treatment is appropriate for the patients.

Studying in the UK was a life-changing experience for me. I love Brighton, it’s a very beautiful town. You have the seafront, you have the South Downs, you have nature, the city.