Graduate / I find Biochemical Engineering interesting ; Personal Statement for PhD [4]

I am glad to be here and would be grateful if you can provide your insights and comments with regards to my PhD application Personal Statement, below. I plan to tweak the statement to fit each schools program, this will be a choice from within the brackets you will see through the statement. Thank you in advance and Happy New Year!

As a chemical engineer, I find Biochemical Engineering interesting because of the auspicious potential it holds to address problems that traditional engineering failed to resolve. The two-way relationship, where living cells/organisms are employed to serve industrial purposes and engineering is used to solve medicinal/biological problems, adds to the excitement. On the one hand, employing living organisms provides solutions to production cost/optimization issues, repeatability of reactions difficulties, environmental and recycling concerns. While on the other hand, applying engineering concepts and models offers answers to medical dilemmas such as availability of drugs, cures, and tissue replacements. In such a relatively novel field of technology, there is a lot to be discovered and more to be invented. Within Biotechnology, I am specifically interested in: (drug delivery mechanisms, tissue engineering, biopolymers, and bio-catalysis). It is my desire to improve the life-quality of humans by developing a cure/solution for a medical problem, or improve the quality of food procesing, or reduce the damaging impact of industries on the environment.

I am a female Saudi national, brought up in a small family that values and supports education and career excellence. Knowing my interest were directed towards science and technology, my family has continuously supported me in challenging the stereotype in Saudi, where females are limited to careers in education, medicine, and -recently- banking. With this support, I chose to study Chemical Engineering as a course of applied science that would prepare me to pursue a career in research.

My interest in science and research became apparent during high school years. However, my specific interest in Biotechnology was first triggered during junior year in college, when I enrolled in a Biomedical Engineering elective course. Dr. XXX, the course instructor, introduced drug delivery, tissue engineering and several other concepts of Biotechnology. To me, this course was an eye-opener. The combination of chemical engineering and biology fascinated me, and by the end of the course I knew Biotechnology/Biochemical Engineering is what I wanted to continue studying and exploring. In summer of 2004, I graduated with First Class Honors BSc. in Chemical Engineering and with a strong determination to focus my specialization, and expand my expertise to pursue research.

Upon earning my bachelor degree, I started my career in (my company's name) in a job that is neither research nor engineering. My job was in business analysis and ventures, which has developed my understanding of the business side of projects and technology. While on the job, I pursued admission for a Master's degree in Biotechnology and within the second year on the job, I was offered a place at the School of Chemical Engineering & Analytical Sciences at the University of Manchester for a MSc. in Biotechnology. In 2006, I took sabbatical leave from work and started a condensed 12-months combined (taught-research) MSc. program. The program provided valuable knowledge in biochemistry, cereal biotechnology, bioprocessing, tissue and metabolic engineering. For my dissertation, I chose to work with Prof. XXX in researching Phase Transition Behavior of Lipid Mixtures & the Effect of Diacylglecyrol Kinase Protein. This research was part of a project developed for Unilever. In addition to the new concepts of protein behavior and interphase reactions, working with Prof. Gordon's team has developed my experience in academic research and its methodology. Moreover, the practical experimental nature of the subject was exciting as well as challenging. I gained new skills in working with biological material and utilizing techniques such as density spectrometry and phase transition interpretation. Although the research duration was relatively short, around 6 months, my research work produced valuable results for the bigger project carried-on by the team of PhD and post doctorate researchers. These results were presented at the Faraday Conference on Lipids in London, September 2012.

Upon my graduation and return to the job, I have taken up several roles that included refinery operations planning, economics, and optimization. Yet, the most exciting assignment was with Research & Development where our team was investigating the utilization of modified-bacteria in the desulphurization of crude oil in wells and tanks. Currently, I work in the Technology Development team in the Chemical Business organization where, in collaboration with the Research Centers, the team develops and assesses new technologies for chemicals productions and applications.

Biotechnology is a relatively emerging field in the Middle East. Therefore, I plan to invest the knowledge and experience I gain at XXX University to re-introduce the bio- concept to the industry in Saudi Arabia. Specifically, I aspire to make the link between the petroleum and other industries such as medicine, food, and pharmaceuticals. To achieve this goal, I plan to capitalize on (my company's name) Chemicals strategy which revolves around expanding its product chain to include specialty chemicals designed for specific application. After expressing my interest in research and graduate studies and as part of my career progression in (my company's name), I have been granted sponsorship to earn a PhD degree in Chemical Engineering, and upon attaining the PhD degree, I plan to work in one of the satellite and local research centers (my company's name) plans to establish. Thus, the XXX program at your respected university is not only a tailor-fit for my personal interest, but serves the future strategic plans of (my company's name)'s Chemicals Department as well

I have always aimed to challenge myself in hopes of contributing to human's well-being through medicinal, food-related, or environmental achievements. Therefore, with my enthusiasm for research, I believe a PhD degree in Chemical Engineering/Biotechnology is a natural step towards this goal. The School of Chemical Engineering at the university of XXX presents an exceptional platform for research in the area of XXX. I am confident that training at your institution, with its diligently maintained its reputation as a breeding ground for technology pioneers, will help lead my aspirations to fruition. As such, I would be greatly honored to be part of the research community of XXX university and join the team focusing on XXX.