Selena Milanovic

Community Bursary Award Holder

Joining us from: Merano, Italy

DPhil Engineering Science (2017)

As a passionate biomedical engineer, I am continuously striving to contribute to scientific advance and community engagement.

My DPhil project aims to uncover what pictures hide by designing mathematical models that describe the relationship between capillary blood flow and nutrient consumption in brain tissue. Understanding these mechanisms is essential for the development of target drugs for brain degenerative diseases. While being a dedicated scientist, I also firmly believe in the benefits of creating interdisciplinary collaborations with government and industry bodies. Such partnerships are fundamental for the translation of research results into tangible impact, and both the University of Oxford and St Cross college provide exceptional entrepreneurship platforms that will support you along the way.

Examples of my efforts beyond the academic walls are the talk I gave in the House of Commons, which was an opportunity to advocate the importance of government support for scientific advance; and the entrepreneurship bootcamp organized by the MPLS division I attended in Hong Kong.

Most recently, I was very honoured to be a recipient of the St Cross Community Bursary, which was awarded to me in recognition of my entrepreneurial achievements. This scholarship was a catalyst for the implementation of a homelessness prevention plan I am working towards with the Oxford City council and the World Economic Forum.

Being also very vocal about gender equality and social justice, I was thrilled to discover that St Cross college is a uniquely open-minded and humble community. Hence, expect to find yourself in a crowd of curious minds, that will welcome you with open arms and more good humour than you would anticipate!