Thank you all so much, I am absolutely thrilled that you voted me your winner of the November 2022 Genetics Zone.

I want to say a huge thankyou to all the students and teachers who logged on to talk with the scientists throughout the zone.  I hope that we answered all of your questions and gave you some insights into our lives both in and out of the lab.

I had a fantastic time participating in the genetics zone over the last month and I very much looked forward to the chats and the questions you all asked on the Ask page.  I was blown away by your enthusiasm and your interest in what we do, why we do it and of course the question that made us all stop and think: what might we be doing in 10 years’ time?  Chatting with you all really made me consider how I talk about my job and gave me the confidence to have those kinds of discussions with my family and friends outside of work, so thankyou again.

Thankyou to the I’m a scientist team, especially the moderators for keeping our chats going, and to the institutes who funded the 2022 Genetics Zone, especially the Institute of Genetics and Cancer at the University of Edinburgh for my chance to participate.  I’d also like to thank all the scientists who took part, I really enjoyed learning about your work along side the students. 

I’m really excited to use the prize money to develop an outreach activity and I can’t wait to get started over the next few weeks.

To all the students who were involved in the Genetics Zone, I wish you the best of luck in your studies, your exams and your future careers.  Hold on to your enthusiasm and the inquisitiveness you showed during the zone and you will go far in whatever you decide to do.

Thanks again!

Charli Corcoran