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Category: Allgemein

Cystic fibrosis in Africa: Two PhD students fighting for hope

Cystic fibrosis in Africa: Two PhD students fighting for hope

Too many cystic fibrosis patients in Africa die young and often without ever having been diagnosed. In many African countries there are too few test devices that could diagnose the disease. Nada and Michèle, two doctoral students at the University of Bern, launched a crowdfunding campaign to buy a test device and were overwhelmed by the result.

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Where north meets east

Where north meets east

Image: Jule Ksinsik

There is a place in Europe where the climate is chilly, people are patriotic, and the mellow scent of freshly baked pies lingers in the air. Jule Ksinsik, political science student at the University of Bern, tells us about her exchange experience at the University of Tartu and explains why she advises all political science students to visit Estonia.

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“Mountains, rivers, and bureaucracy”: a Belgian Student’s Swiss Adventure

“Mountains, rivers, and bureaucracy”: a Belgian Student’s Swiss Adventure

Image: Tibo Wiels

Last year, Tibo, a master’s student in biomedical engineering, decided to trade the Belgian flatlands for the Swiss Alps. Tibo has many stories to tell about his experience as an exchange student: from navigating Swiss bureaucracy to taking freezing-cold swims in the river Aare!

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Two Ukrainian doctors: Sisters and soulmates

Two Ukrainian doctors: Sisters and soulmates

Image: Antonina & Kateryna Antonenko

Antonina and Kateryna Antonenko came to Bern fleeing the war in Ukraine. The two medical professionals received a grant from the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) to work and research at the Inselspital for one year. In this interview, the two sisters talk about the differences between working as doctors in Bern and Kyiv.

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Israeli academic leadership delegation visits Bern

Israeli academic leadership delegation visits Bern

Image: Manu Friedrich

At the beginning of July, the executive board of the University of Bern welcomed a leadership delegation from several universities in Israel. The aim of their visit was to discuss topics at the interface between research and management.

Universities face common cross-border challenges, such as climate change and disruptive technologies. Read more “Israeli academic leadership delegation visits Bern”

“You should see their faces”: Advising Ukrainian students at the University of Bern

“You should see their faces”: Advising Ukrainian students at the University of Bern

Tetyana Fedorchuk prefers to be called Tania. She works as an intern at UniBE International. Her job is to advise students who fled to Switzerland and are interested in continuing their studies at the University of Bern. As Ukrainian, she can greet the newcomers in their mother tongue.

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A Zoom call to Kyiv

A Zoom call to Kyiv

Igor Tokarchuk was an MD-PhD student at the University of Bern. When he and his family returned home to Ukraine and Igor started a job at a biotech company, the future looked bright. Then the war changed everything. He talks to Lenka Fehrenbach, international program manager at UniBE International, about coping with the strains of war and how setting up the refugee camp led to reviving an old bread factory.

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Fatalism and silent opposition: Impressions of Russia at war

Fatalism and silent opposition: Impressions of Russia at war

Trying to understand what people think and why they have formed a certain opinion. This is one of the reasons why Michèle Häfliger, a master’s student in Eastern European Studies, wanted to spend a semester at Kazan State University. For the first time, she applied in January 2020.

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Young biologist from Iran won post-doc scholarship

Young biologist from Iran won post-doc scholarship

Zahra is a medical parasitologist from Iran. She came to Bern on a Global Connections fellowship in summer 2021. The fellowship funds short stays for early-career researchers. During her PhD studies, Zahra attended the Middle Eastern Biology of Parasitism (MeBoP) summer school, where she met Isabel Roditi, co-director of the Institute of Cell Biology at the University of Bern.

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