Kasper Munch Beck, UC San Diego 2019

In the fall of 2019, I visited the research group of Professor Yitzhak Tor at the University of California San Diego as a Fulbright Grantee. As part of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry they work with the chemical synthesis of modified DNA building blocks and their properties within biotechnology, and so, they were the perfect match for me.

I mainly work with the chemistry behind modified DNA, however, the equipment and expertise present in this research group enabled me to explore a new area of my project (in this case enzymatic studies), which would have been very challenging at my home university.

Fulbright Grants

Each year Fulbright Denmark awards grant to top graduate and PhD-students wanting to study or do research in the U.S.

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“I enjoyed the company of skilled and professional researchers, who are passionate about their projects, but also curious about new ideas."

- Kasper Munch Beck, UC San Diego

Now that my stay at UCSD has ended, I have acquired a great amount of valuable information and insight into the specific system that I am studying as part of my Ph.D program at The University of Southern Denmark. Furthermore, I enjoyed the company of skilled and professional researchers, who are passionate about their projects, but also curious about new ideas – like the one I brought with me to their laboratory.

The experience of joining a foreign research group is highly recommendable, and it has rewarded me not only with academic results but also with personal growth. In my experience, the work environment was relaxed with room to express genuine interest in challenges and triumphs of collegues throughout the day. This often resulted extended into the evening or weekend – but does it matter if you love what you do and have like-minded people around you to share the enthusiasm with?

"The work environment was relaxed with room to express genuine interest in the challenges and triumphs of colleagues"

- Kaper Munch Beck, UC San Diego.

Embarking a semester-long stay on my own to the other side of the planet was an overwhelming but awesome feeling, and support from family and friends was helpful. However, the support provided by Fulbright Denmark was truly a great help to such a challenge. The unique combination of financial support, cultural insight and help with visa/paperwork within Fulbright Denmark cannot be overestimated.

The financial support of 50,000DKK was very helpful in a city like San Diego with extremely high housing and living expenses. In combination with the well-assisted visa process and other practicalities, it allowed me to turn my focus to the academic and social aspect of the experience once I was there. Finally, throughout the whole process – both planning and during my stay – I was helped by attentive and kind people at Fulbright both in Denmark and in the U.S. For that I am very thankful – it was an assuring safety net to bring with me.

I hope more people decide to pursue the exciting and challenging experience of a semester in the U.S., and if they do, I can only recommend them to team up with Fulbright Denmark for the most optimal and rewarding stay.