Cohort 2019
Hello! I study the neuroimmunology of mood disorder at the intersections of pharmacology, psychiatry, and chemistry. My academic background is quite broad. I studied general biomedicine and biochemistry during my undergraduate degree at the University of Queensland and won a scholarship to undertake my postgraduate honours degree here at Oxford University. I was awarded UQ valedictorian for the class of 2018, and in 2019 received the university medal for academic achievement before becoming a Clarendon scholar later that year. In and outside the lab I am passionate about environemntal sustainability, and am the sustainability representative for Lincoln College and the Pharmacology Department.
Daniel Radford-Smith
College/Degree: Lincoln/DPhil Pharmacology
Country of Origin: Australia
Cohort: 2019
Aslı is a DPhil candidate based at the Centre on Migration, Policy & Society (COMPAS). Her research investigates the determinants and the economic impacts of the labor market integration of refugees in host economies with large informal sectors. Prior to joining COMPAS, she worked at the International Committee of the Red Cross as a Policy and Humanitarian Diplomacy Associate for the Eurasia desk. She holds an MSc in International Migration and Public Policy from London School of Economics and a dual BA in Economics and International Studies from Northwestern University.
Aslı Salihoğlu
College/Degree: Keble College/DPhil in Migration Studies
Country of Origin: Turkey
Cohort: 2019
I completed my Master of Science degree in Chemistry from IIT KGP and joined Prof. Hayward’s group at the University of Oxford as a Clarendon scholar in The FutureCat project in October 2019. My study focuses on the synthesis and characterisation of new cathode materials for Li-ion batteries.
Suraj Mahato
College/Degree: St. John's College/DPhil, Inroganic Chemistry
Country of Origin: India
Cohort: 2019
My research interests centre on blood management in Trauma and Orthopaedic surgery. In particular, how to reduce blood loss during joint replacement surgery and how to optimise recovery from anaemia postoperatively. I studied for my medical degree at Oxford University and Imperial College London, became a member of the Royal College of Surgeons England in 2014 and commenced higher surgical training in Trauma and Orthopaedic surgery in 2017. I am now taking time out of training to pursue my academic interest.
Naomi Gibbs
College/Degree: Lincoln College/DPhil Musculoskeletal Sciences
Country of Origin: United States
Cohort: 2019
I studied for an integrated Master’s in Molecular and Cellular Biology at University of Glasgow. Before I commenced my studies, I completed an internship in Oslo University Hospital. After the 1st year in Glasgow, I moved to Australia to complete a year of exchange at Melbourne University. I also did two internships in Australia, one in Monash University, and one in University of Queensland. I completed my Master’s project in the Francis Crick Institute in London. At Oxford, I work in the Davis lab and I am interested in synaptic plasticity.
Dalia Sara Gala
College/Degree: Merton/DPhil Biochemistry
Country of Origin: Poland
Cohort: 2019
I completed my undergrad in Molecular Biology in 2017 at Long Island University in Brooklyn, NY, where I also played Division I soccer. I then spent three months as a marine/molecular biology research intern for the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama before returning to the US to work on algal biofuels at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Prior to attending Oxford, I was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship to complete an MRes in Biotechnology and Bioenergy at the University of Nottingham where I engineered cyanobacteria to produce terpenoids. At Oxford, I use electrochemistry to study enzyme cascades and enzymes involved in cancer proliferation.
Ryan Herold
College/Degree: Trinity/DPhil Inorganic Chemistry
Country of Origin: United States
Cohort: 2019
Originally from Vancouver, Canada, Kaitlyn made her way overseas to Oxford to pursue a DPhil exploring the mechanism by which Parkinson’s Disease is caused, with the hope of developing improved therapeutics. After completing her bachelors degree at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver with a year spent studying abroad at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, she moved to Zurich, Switzerland to complete a masters degree at ETH Zurich. When not feeding her stem cells, Kaitlyn enjoys spending time outdoors, hiking, running and rock climbing.
Kaitlyn Cramb
College/Degree: St. John's College/DPhil in Physiology, Anatomy & Genetics
Country of Origin: Canada
Cohort: 2019
My research background and area of specialisation lies in Applied Linguistics. Prior to purising my MSc and DPhil here at Oxford, I studied and lived in Toronto, Canada. I currently study how children in creole-speaking countries like Jamaica develop writing skills and the unique challenges that they face. My research also focuses on teacher education and development in creole and low- to middle-income countries. When I am not working on my thesis you can find me in a cafe sipping coffee while catching up with friends, at the gym, or at St. Aldates church singing and connecting with other postgrads and lovely people of all ages from the wider Oxford community!
Shawna-Kaye Tucker
College/Degree: Green Templeton /DPhil, Education
Country of Origin: Jamaica
Cohort: 2019
I graduated from Imperial College London in 2015 with distinctions in my medical degree and a first class intercalated BSc in neuroscience. I then moved to the Oxford for Academic Foundation and Core Surgical training, before becoming an Honorary Specialty Registrar in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. I am now taking time out of clinical training to complete a DPhil in biomedical data science. My research, which is funded by an NIHR Doctoral Research Fellowship, aims to improve the way we measure the outcomes of surgery through contemporary psychometrics and machine learning. In addition to this, I hold a scholarship at NICE, where I have contributed to evidence review for NHS commissioning decisions.
Conrad Harrison
College/Degree: Balliol/DPhil
Country of Origin: UK
Cohort: 2019
I graduated from Imperial College London in 2015 with distinctions in my medical degree and a first class intercalated BSc in neuroscience. I then moved to the Oxford for Academic Foundation and Core Surgical training, before becoming an Honorary Specialty Registrar in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. I am now taking time out of clinical training to complete a DPhil in biomedical data science. My research, which is funded by an NIHR Doctoral Research Fellowship, aims to improve the way we measure the outcomes of surgery through contemporary psychometrics and machine learning. In addition to this, I hold a scholarship at NICE, where I have contributed to evidence review for NHS commissioning decisions.
Marcus Spiegel
College/Degree: Christ Church/DPhil in Geography and the Environment
Country of Origin: United States
Cohort: 2019
I grew up in Oxford and attended local comprehensive school, Cheney School. I completed my undergraduate degree in History at the University of Glasgow, winning the Irene Munro Fraser Prize for the highest grade in Junior Honours. I have a masters degree in Modern British History from the University of Oxford. I received a full AHRC Doctoral Training Studentship to fund my Masters degree. I am broadly interested in twentieth-century British and Irish women’s history. My DPhil thesis uses oral history to examine the experiences of the first women who entered formerly male colleges at the University of Oxford in 1974.
Florence Smith
College/Degree: St Hugh's/DPhil History
Country of Origin: UK
Cohort: 2019
I am a 2nd year DPhil student in the lab of Hal Drakesmith, studying the role of iron in adaptive immunity. I graduated from McGill University in 2019 with a Bachelor of Science in Honours Microbiology and Immunology and was awarded the Major Hiram Mills Medal. In my spare time I enjoy walking in the local countryside and sewing my own clothes.
Megan Teh
College/Degree: Corpus Christi College/DPhil Medical Sciences
Country of Origin: Canada
Cohort: 2019
Originally from Maryland outside Washington, DC, Jared is pursuing a DPhil in Mathematics with a focus in analytic number theory. He is particularly interested in prime numbers and related structures emerging from basic multiplication. Jared was graduated from Dartmouth in 2018 with bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Mathematics, and a minor in Physics. In 2019 he earned a MASt (Part III of Tripos, with distinction) as a Churchill Scholar at Cambridge. Jared enjoys finding varied speakers and events across campus, as well as sports of all kinds.
Jared Duker Lichtman
College/Degree: Balliol College/DPhil Mathematics
Country of Origin: United States
Cohort: 2019
I am a DPhil student in engineering science and also a member of the Oxford Communications Research Group. In prior, I completed my B.Eng and M.S. degrees in communication engineering from Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications. My research interests are focused on characterising the value of information for next-generation communication systems. I am also interested in information theory, wireless communications and network optimisation. Besides my research, I love tennis (fan of Federer) and playing Ukelele.
Zijing Wang
College/Degree: Balliol College/DPhil
Country of Origin: China
Cohort: 2019
Alexander is a doctoral candidate in Public International Law. His thesis explores party status to armed conflict in international law. His doctoral research is supported by a Clarendon scholarship and by a doctoral scholarship of the German National Academic Foundation. Alexander is also a researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law in Heidelberg and teaches International Dispute Settlement at Freie Universität Berlin. He has clerked at the Supreme Court of Namibia.Alexander holds degrees in law from Humboldt-Universität Berlin (First Legal State Examination – Faculty Prize), Université Paris II – Panthéon-Assas (Maîtrise en droit), and the University of Oxford (MJur – Clifford Chance Prize Proxime Accessit; Law Faculty Prize in International Law and Armed Conflict).
Alexander Wentker
College/Degree: The Queen's College/DPhil in Law
Country of Origin: Germany
Cohort: 2019
My research focuses on using pharmacoepidemiologic and pharmacogenomic approaches to study drug's effectiveness and safety.
Junqing Xie
College/Degree: The Queen's College/DPhil
Country of Origin: China
Cohort: 2019
Hello! I'm a DPhil student in Philosophy. My research focuses on G.W. Leibniz’s philosophy of religion. Previously, I've studied Comparative Literature (with an emphasis on poetry and German Romanticism), French, and Latin at different European universities, including ENS de Lyon, Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg, and the University of Oslo. I'm passionate about the Humanities and their different intersections, as well as teaching and public communication. In my spare time, I enjoy drawing, playing the piano, and martial arts.
Åsne Dorthea Grøgaard
College/Degree: Lady Margaret Hall/DPhil in Philosophy
Country of Origin: Norway
Cohort: 2019
Domiziana is a DPhil candidate in Migration Studies based at COMPAS investigating the onward migration-family nexus. Domiziana completed her MPhil in Sociology at the University of Cambridge in July 2019 with a Gates Cambridge Scholarship and received a BA (Hons) in Liberal Arts and Science at Amsterdam University College, where she began conducting research for and with (migrant) NGOs. Migration aside, research interests include gender, race, public health, and education. Domiziana is also passionate about teaching, public engagement... and bodybuilding!
Domiziana Turcatti
College/Degree: Wolfson/DPhil Migration Studies
Country of Origin: Italy
Cohort: 2019
My PhD is on the genetics of human disease, and I am specifically interested in using large population cohorts to understand the biology of obesity, female reproductive disorders, and other hormone-associated diseases. I came to Oxford after completing an undergraduate degree in Molecular Biology at Princeton University in the US, although I grew up in Bangalore, India. When I’m not doing my degree, I enjoy playing university badminton on the women’s first squad, trying new vegetarian recipes with my housemates, and going on walks in Port Meadows, Shotover, and the other lovely green spaces of Oxford!
Samvida S. Venkatesh
College/Degree: University College/DPhil in Genomic Medicine and Statistics
Country of Origin: India
Cohort: 2019
Vincent is joining the Dunn School of Pathology to research the role of a receptor on macrophages with unknown function known as GPR84. This receptor is part of a larger family of G-protein coupled receptors in our genome which govern all manner of physiological processes. Previously, Vincent has worked on other such receptors including those for cannabinoids, glutamate, and acetylcholine, all of which are expressed in the brain. This move represents the beginning of a new area of research into inflammation and innate immunology. Vincent is an enthusiastic Kiwi Tongan scientist who also cooking, water polo, and movies.
Vincent B Luscombe
College/Degree: Somerville College/DPhil in Molecular Cell Biology in Health and Disease
Country of Origin: New Zealand
Cohort: 2019