The 12th installment of "Messages from Female Scientists to Aspiring Scientists" featured a lecture by Professor Kazuko Niki of the Department of Pharmacy/Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hokkaido University Hospital, titled "Exploring the Causes of Sporadic Parkinson's Disease from Familial Parkinson's Disease." After graduating from the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, she worked as a technical assistant at universities and research institutes while writing academic papers and obtaining a doctoral degree through her dissertation. She spoke frankly about her journey so far, reflecting on the enjoyable aspects of molecular biology experiments, the frustrations she felt as a technical assistant (not being able to decide the direction of research because she wasn't a researcher), her real-life experiences with young children and elementary school children, and the challenges and joys of balancing work and childcare. Her messages, interspersed with concrete anecdotes such as "You can't go beyond your goals" and "Don't undervalue yourself," seemed to resonate with the students.
Thank you, Professor Niki!
