First Things First with Michal Ramot

Dr. Michal Ramot,  faculty scholar in the Department of Neurobiology at the Weizmann Institute, returned to Israel after six years at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland. She has been living on the Weizmann campus, which “helped a great deal to easily adjust to being back in Israel.” This is indeed a great benefit that Weizmann Institute is able to offer its faculty members.

“My lab is almost complete, and we still have a few rooms to build in which to conduct research. The lab provides students with a place to interact. I am having a wonderful time running my lab. This is mainly due to my amazing students, and it is truly fun to interact with them.  They aren’t as stressed about their future should they fail with one experiment.”

Dr. Ramot says one of the big differences between running a lab in Israel and the US is funding. Universities in Israel give young PIs a safety net of support.  And of course, being a Zuckerman Faculty Scholar has been really great. “In addition to the funding for setting up my lab, everything around the program, such as meeting other scholars, has been so beneficial and has opened many doors, including an invitation to give a talk at the Agriculture Faculty in Rehovot, something that would not have happened without meeting others through the program.”