Dresden International Graduate School for Interdisciplinary Life Sciences

Dr. Olya Vvedenskaya studied medicine specializing in medical biophysics in Moscow and worked on her MD thesis devoted to traumatic brain injury and mass spectrometry at the University of Pittsburgh, USA. She further did her PhD in Berlin, Germany working on a multi-omics approach to research of liver cancer and precancerous conditions. She continued her work in translational medicine and mass spectrometry in Dresden, working as a postdoc in MPI-CBG. Currently, she works in scientific communication at Lipotype, focusing on scientific outreach, marketing strategy, content creation, and community engagement strategies.

Additionally, to her main job, Olya devotes her time to academic mental health advocacy and community support. She co-founded Dragonfly Mental Health (2019) and Sci.STEPS mentorship program for scientists (2022).

Avinash Chekuru serves as the Advisor for Impact Partnerships for the Global South at TU Dresden, responsible for shaping the university’s strategy in research collaborations, innovation ecosystems, and technology transfer initiatives. His recent work includes the transCampus with IIT Madras, the Saxon Science Liaison Office India, and a bi-directional start-up exchange—key components of TU Dresden’s Excellence Strategy, also highlighted at the 7th Intergovernmental Consultations between India and Germany, a G2G meeting led by the heads of state in 2024. Avinash began his journey in 2008 at TU Dresden with a Master’s in Molecular Bioengineering, followed by PhD in Biology under the Dresden International PhD Program(DIPP) and postdoctoral research. Thereafter, he transitioned into his current role at the nexus of strategy, science policy, and politics. He is also an elected member of Dresden’s Foreigners Council and has held leadership roles in the Indian Association Dresden and Indian Students in Germany, that have further strengthened his expertise in public policy for his current role at TUD.

Luke is a Partner and European Patent Attorney at HERTIN & Partner, Berlin. Luke provides advice on all aspects of European and international patent law, with a focus on the life sciences / biotechnology / pharmaceutical sectors. Luke received his accreditation from the European Patent Office (EPO) in 2012 and has experience in drafting patent applications, building and managing international patent portfolios, EPO opposition and appeal proceedings, and preparing patentability and freedom-to-operate opinions. After studying at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand (Biochemistry/Genetics, BSc. Hons) and industry research (Molecular Microbiology; AgResearch), Luke earned a PhD (Epigenetics) at the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics (MPI-CBG) and the Biotechnology Center of the TUD.

“As a trained experimentalist with a PhD in Physics, I have developed over the years a strong passion for data science and thrive in dynamic biotech environments. In the field of drug discovery, my interdisciplinary background enables me to tackle complex challenges (what I enjoy the most)—such as translating human pathology into screenable assays and using modern data science tools to interpret high-dimensional data. I also deeply enjoy the collaborative nature of start-ups, including the opportunity to shape teams and influence the business.

I’m very excited to share insights from my journey with you.”

Cathie’s scientific journey began at National Taiwan University, and took her to the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry in Göttingen, Germany, where her PhD research was in the field of ribosome function and dynamics. She gained expertise in biochemistry, biophysics, and enzyme kinetics while constructing a full kinetic mechanism of alternative ribosome-rescue in bacteria, and became deeply interested in the process of transforming scientific research into real-life solutions that improve people’s health and quality of life.

Cathie has a strong analytical background, a track record of managing interdisciplinary projects, and is skilled in intercultural communication from many years of international experience and teamwork. At Scitaris, she leverages these strengths to build strong collaborative relationships with her clients and contribute to innovative and scientific decision-making in the pharmaceutical industry.

Celina Love is a consultant at L.E.K. Consulting, specializing in life sciences strategy. She holds a PhD in synthetic biology from the Max Planck Institute, where she worked in Dora Tang’s lab as the founding PhD student. Her doctoral research focused on engineering pH-responsive biomimetic cells using lipid membranes and phase-separated liquid droplets.

Since transitioning into consulting, Celina has spent the past three years advising biotech and pharmaceutical clients across Europe on growth strategy, R&D prioritization, and commercial due diligence. She is based in Munich, where she lives with her partner and two daughters.

Svea Cheeseman completed her PhD at B CUBE Dresden in 2016. After navigating the challenging transition from academia to industry, she joined Sartorius in 2017 as a Junior Product Manager. Over four years, she gained diverse commercial experience across product management and sales roles in multiple countries. In 2021, her passion for biophysics drew her to a breakthrough technology called mass photometry. She joined Refeyn, a 45-person startup in Oxford, embarking on a high-speed journey as the company rapidly scaled into a global biotech with over 200 employees and multimillion-dollar revenues.

In 2014 I earned degree from University of Zagreb, Faculty of Physics with focus on numerical simulations of dynein motor protein. In 2021 I received Dr. rer. nat. in Physics from TU Dresden, with focus on biophysics of myosin in actomyosin cortex.

In 2022 I started working for Bayer AG. My first position was business analysis where as a part of software engineering team I did requirements engineering, bridging the gap between data scientist and software developers. From 2025 I took a position of product owner / project manager where I support my team to streamline workflows of clinical bookmaker data to speed up early target identification and drug discovery pipeline.

Marc Hentz is a life science executive and advisor with over 25 years of experience in biotech, consulting and venture capital.

Marc started his professional career as a management consultant with a top-tier consultancy before he became a Managing Partner at Biopolis & Company. Other prior roles included founding CEO of a biosimilars firm and Managing Director at AMP Therapeutics, Leipzig, a firm that developed innovative antibiotic solutions. He also served as the Managing Director of Dewpoint Therapeutics in Germany before joining the founding team of Open Sesame Therapeutics in Dresden in 2022 as CEO.

Marc studied Chemistry at Hamburg University and UC San Diego and completed his PhD work in Molecular and Cellular Biology at Hamburg University and Yale University. Marc also served on the boards of various international biotech and private equity firms.

Dr. Eva Schmid leads the Scientific Training Unit at the Vienna BioCenter, where she and her team design and deliver innovative training programs for a diverse and thriving scientific community. Trained as a microbiologist, she earned her PhD from the Laboratory of Molecular Biology and the University of Cambridge in the UK, followed by over a decade of interdisciplinary research at UC Berkeley. Her career reflects a strong interest in and dedication for both science and the people that drive it. Transitioning from research, she now focuses on fostering collaborative scientific communities and equipping researchers with skills for the evolving academic landscape.

Data analyst with a master’s degree in medical biotechnology from the Jagiellonian University in Cracow (2009), a PhD in computational biology from Biotec, TU Dresden (2012, advisor: Prof. Andreas Beyer), and a postdoctoral fellowship at Stanford University School of Medicine (2013–2015). Her research focused on systems biology and systems medicine. Since 2015, Weronika has worked at Deloitte, Credit Suisse, and Citibank, developing computational tools to extract insights from data across various business domains, including consulting, internal audit, credit risk, and climate risk. She is currently a Regulatory Risk Senior Manager (VP) at Citibank.

WHY is this workshop a game changer for you? As a Human Ressources Manager with 20 years experience in hiring people in 6 countries (in Germany, the USA, Netherlands, Mexico, Belgium and South Africa) married to a scientist and having made a career switch lately myself, let me show you the importance of Jobhunting 4.0 in your current PhD/Postdoc situation – especially as an introvert!

In the interactive workshop held by one of our Consultants at Scitaris you will gain insight into the everyday life of a R&D consultant. You will work on the scientific validation of a drug candidate by analyzing clinical trial data. From this, you will make business considerations for clinical drug development. In this workshop you will also have the chance to ask all your questions about biotech consulting in a Q&A session.