Meilin and Amber are both students of Leiden University completing their Masters in Biomedical Sciences Management. As part of their study requirements, Amber and Meilin are with us for a total of 6 months and will step into the role of marketing analysts. They have been learning and implementing management strategies within InnoSer under the guidance of our commercial and scientific team members Tim Rodenburg and Alex Bastiaens.

Meilin and Amber’s days start at home. Working remotely calls for lots of online collaboration. The students not only talk to each other constantly through WhatsApp and online calls but also discuss their project progress with Alex and Tim in regular Zoom meetings. A weekly check-in with the whole team sets their tasks in motion and keeps everyone on the same page.

Throughout the week the students have been conducting industry research identifying patterns and trends within the biosciences field and how to apply that information to the company strategy as part of their roles as marketing analysts.

Aside from conducting market research, the students most recent focus has been the planning and organizing of a survey that aims to gather information on the use of advanced in vitro models in biomedical research. It is an important part of InnoSer’s efforts to integrate the perspectives of all involved in biomedical sciences. With surveys like these, we aim to help shape the future of our R&D and contribute to innovative platforms as efficiently as possible.

Planning and proposing the survey helped the students utilise and further their management skills they have been developing through their studies. With the guidance of their mentors here at InnoSer, they have refined these skills with real life examples which aim to produce practical outcomes.

“This involved planning a timeline that started at what platform to host the survey on and what questions to include all the way to getting the survey out there and filled in by participants” explained Meilin. Amber further added that “a project like this called upon and put into use all the topics we are covering at university, it’s a great way to see that what we are learning can turn into something real”.

The students have both remarked on how much they have enjoyed working with an innovative company where they can directly contribute to bettering drug development processes. “We have real responsibilities that have a real effect on the company, its customers, and eventually patients,” says Amber. Meilin explains that “being able to email the CEO would never happen at a big company and it gives us a great learning opportunity to see how InnoSer works on all levels, the communication is a closed circle so everyone is on the same page”.

“Once the results have been analysed the final step in the process will be turning them into a white paper to share with the wider science community” says Amber. If you would like to contribute to their research by participating in the survey, you will also gain access to the white paper once it is published.

 When the work day is finished, Both Meilin and Amber are sure to get outside whether it’s to play hockey, do aerial acrobatics or have a beer on the terrace. The students mention that it can be difficult living in a house full of people with different schedules but there is always someone around to do something fun with when the day is over.

With our two students finishing up their time with InnoSer at the end of July, it’s been great to have two such proactive and motivated students who have managed to have a direct impact on the company and learn skills for the future in their roles as marketing analysts.