“Be passionate, be confident and believe in yourself”

Hello, my name is Eden Esteves and I am from Sligo. I moved to Dublin about 9 years ago to study at what was previously known as ‘’ DIT’’. I graduated with a degree in Biosciences and Bio-molecular Science in 2016. Yes, a rather lucky one to have two degrees, but still took four years in total. Currently I am a final year PhD student in UCD and in collaboration with Teagasc, Ireland and AgResearch limited, New Zealand.  

After doing a research project in DIT, I fell in love with research and the diversity and flexibility that it offers. I applied for various PhD projects and now, I am working on a very exciting project looking at ‘’blown’’ pack spoilage in vacuum packaged red meat. Striving to keep meat safe! Currently, my main research interests are studying the microbiome of different ecosystems and the newly emerging techniques to achieve it. 

During my PhD, I had the opportunity to study the microbiota of beef carcass and rump steaks. It was new territory but still science right?! UCD also gave me the opportunity to study Bioinformatics in Food Safety module, which helped me nurture my interest in microbiome studies. 

To anyone who would like a career in science, just go for it. There is always a way to do what you love, so never give up. Importantly, always remember you can teach yourself anything you want to learn given the opportunity. Be passionate, be confident and believe in yourself.