Student experience: KI Summer School for Medical Research
- Student guest blogger
- Nov 4
- 2 min read
My name is Galliard, and I’m a third-semester medical student here at KI.
Before starting at KI, I had no previous experience in research, or even much interest in it, to be completely honest. But during my time here, thanks to the amazing work that SIF does, I got encouraged to participate in KI Summer School for Medical Research (KISS). For those who don’t know, KISS is an 8-week summer program at KI for bachelor students interested in research. Each student is placed in a different research group and works in their lab on an individual project. I was placed in the Department of Clinical Neuroscience, where my project focused on the role of semantics (language) in olfactory working memory.
At first, the idea of spending eight precious summer weeks doing lab work didn’t sound particularly exciting. But after talking to a few older students who had done research projects before, I realized it’s only boring if you make it that way. If you choose a group and project that truly interest you, it’s pretty hard to end up being bored. My main interests are in stem cells and skin-related research, and when I first applied to KISS, I had been in contact with a stem cell–focused research group.
Unfortunately, right before the application deadline, they got an invitation to go to Oxford for the summer, and (paradoxically) decided that was a bit more tempting than spending the summer with me (I know, shocking!). So, I had to scramble last minute to find a new group and ended up in a completely different research area than I had originally planned. But honestly, I still had a ton of fun and learned so much!
There are many good reasons to apply to KISS. You get hands-on experience in real research, which can benefit you a lot later on. According to the KISS organizers, about 25% of participants later go on to do a PhD at KI, which is a pretty solid number if you ask me. The first week of KISS consists of mandatory lectures before everyone heads off to their labs, and in my opinion, that was the best part! I got to meet and hang out with amazing students from different programs, and the fika during that week was legendary. We had around 3–4 fika breaks per day, which might actually be a record.
Spending eight weeks of your summer doing research instead of working somewhere else might sound a bit daunting, but KISS offers a 17,500 SEK scholarship upon completion which definitely sweetens the deal if you ask me. If you’re planning to apply to KISS, my advice would be: Try to contact a research group early on and make sure they’re interested in hosting you. And most importantly: pick a topic you’re genuinely curious about!
If you are interested in KI summer school for medical research you can find more information here:
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