Profile
Olivia Fleming
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About Me:
I am Northern Irish and I live in Edinburgh! I study parasites and I like to sing, hike and play piano.
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My pronouns are:
My pronouns are she/they
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My Work:
I am a parasitologist. I am researching new vaccines that protect animals from worm infections.
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Read more
I would like to learn why vaccines against worms sometimes work really well and what makes them work less well. For example, does giving wild animals really good food improve how well the vaccines work?
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My Typical Day:
I cycle to work around 9 and I get to do lots of different things there. I do things like; lab work where I use a microscope to look at my worms, making nice graphs on my computer, and field work where I go into a forest with a team.
My days can look really varied which I love!
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Education:
I went to a high school in Antrim and then I was the only person in my year to go to the University of Cambridge. I studied Natural Sciences, which means I studied some biology, some physics and some maths. I really liked studying evolution and ecology and how to conserve our environment.
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Qualifications:
I did 11 GCSEs and 4 A levels. I did an undergraduate degree and as part of my PhD programme I got a Masters by Research.
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Work History:
After university I moved to Austria to be an au-pair for 8 months! I worked in a family with 4 children which was really fun. I moved to Edinburgh to be a research assistant and realised I really enjoy research, so I am now doing a PhD!
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Current Job:
I am a PhD student!
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My Interview
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How would you describe yourself in 3 words?
Fun musical parasitologist
What did you want to be after you left school?
I had no idea!
Were you ever in trouble at school?
Not often because I don't like being told off!
If you weren't doing this job, what would you choose instead?
I would probably be a doctor
What's your favourite food?
Chips with lots of vinegar
Tell us a joke.
What do you call a donkey with 3 legs? A wonkey.
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