I grew up in Poland. In high school I was primarily interested in mathematics and natural subjects. I was selected for an advanced class in mathematics and had no problems following that. After high school, I achieved a master of science degree at the faculty of forestry at the Warsaw State University of Life Sciences. My masters thesis (see enclosed abstract) concerned the recovery of the otter populations in a number of locations in Poland as the water pollution decreased due to efforts to clean up the waterways.

I have always wanted to conduct research in ecology or other branches of biology, but did not have that possibility in my native Poland so I decided to leave my current employment and move to Sweden, searching for an opportunity to do so.

I have a strong background in mathematics, which gives me analytical capabilities, and a masters degree in forestry, which I think enables me to perform the nature studies correctly and efficiently.

During my five years of study I both gathered theoretical knowledge about various subjects connected to natural sciences and actively participated in numerous field classes, including botany, zoology, and entomology.

During my studies I also took part in three week-long birdringing actions. I'm keen on ornithology and birdwatching.

Since I have a strong grounding in zoology, entomology, botany, and ecology as well as in statistics and information technology (see enclosed list of subjects and courses), I think I'm particularly well prepared to perform a PhD project in natural science.

It would obviously present me with an opportunity to extend my knowledge in areas that interest me much and I'm sure I would very much enjoy working on a challenging project.

I am planning on reinforcing my knowledge of genetics by self-study shortly and would prefer to take an advanced course in genetics in the spring semester of 2008.

Most attractive for me would be a project using a combination of field experiments and theoretical analyses in the domains which interest me a lot (ecology, population biology, genetics). For me, it would be close to the ideal subject for a doctorate from many viewpoints.