In a perfect world, everyone willing to study would have an equal opportunity to get an education. But we do not live in this paradise. Gaining the necessary skills and knowledge to become a successful scientist depends highly on the country you live in and the university you choose.

This is especially true in Central and Eastern Europe, where the success of your PhD project depends to a large extent on how you are able to finance yourself. Universities here seldom provide stipends or scholarships for PhD students, so we have to find additional work.

As a result of working to pay bills, we don't have as much time as we'd like to spend on our research. For this reason, I decided to search for some scholarships funded by international foundations that would allow me to focus on my project instead of doing several unrelated jobs. But the odds are not favourable. These institutions provide funding to only a few students selected from a huge pile of applications (for example, to 7 PhDs out of 200 applicants), so the competition is really intense.

Nevertheless, I had nothing to lose, so I tried. Now there is nothing to do but wait and hope. A success would mean I could stop worrying about paying my rent and focus instead on finishing my thesis.