Stina Börchers Personal, PhD, University

Starting a PhD in Sweden During a Global Pandemic

More than four months have passed since the first case of COVID-19 had reached Sweden. Also, more than four months have passed since I started my PhD in Sweden. Three months have passed since the COVID-19 outbreak was declared a global pandemic. How did the pandemic impact my PhD in a country that is viewed as following a complete different strategy than other countries? A country, that faced many deaths and is still facing many new cases in relation to its inhabitants? Let me tell you about my experience during the last months.

Stina Börchers Eating Behavior, Neuroscience, Obesity

How Does our Brain Know When to Eat and When to Stop?

The regulation of food intake is a complex concert of signals from different parts of our body, working together with our biological clock, and of course, our brain. Those signals (or messages) indicate for example whether our stomach is full or empty, if we have energy incoming, or how much energy we have stored in our fat cells. Eating also needs to be pleasurable. But who is coordinating all these different signals?

Stina Börchers PhD, Study Tips, University

8 Common Mistakes Applicants Make When Writing a Motivation Letter for University

You just finished school, your bachelor's - or master's degree and want to apply to a study program and you need to include a motivation letter? I have written a few of these myself, but most importantly, I was part of the admission committee of our master's program and read and graded a lot of these letters for two years in a row. I noticed some mistakes that applicants commonly made and decided to share them with you here to help you avoid making them.