Life After HAN: An International Alumna's Path to a Research Career

Cristina Bursuc came to the Netherlands without having her whole career mapped out. “Coming to HAN was really my parents' encouragement more than my own plan”, she says. Looking back now, she describes it as one of the best decisions she has made.

A few years later, the Netherlands has become much more than the place where she studied. Cristina has built a life here, learned Dutch and found work in a field she genuinely enjoys. Her experience also gave her a realistic perspective on some of the questions international students may have about what happens after graduation.

“The job search was genuinely tough”, Cristina says. After graduating in 2023, she applied for positions with her CV in English, but it was a challenging time to enter her field. It took around 9 months before she landed a position related to her studies.

In the meantime, Cristina worked for around 3 months at Sanquin. The hands-on lab role didn't require a biology background, but her Life Sciences knowledge helped her understand the processes behind the work, such as how blood is separated and eventually gets to patients.

“That job turned out to be a really valuable stepping stone. I think what eventually got me my current position was a combination of things: the Sanquin experience, having a strong academic record at HAN and honestly, a bit of personality, luck and enthusiasm too.”

Speaking Dutch became part of Cristina's life before she graduated. With a Dutch partner, learning the language came naturally, but her studies also showed her how useful it could be. During her third year at HAN University of Applied Sciences, she worked alongside Dutch colleagues who weren't used to speaking English.

“That's when it really clicked for me: if you want to stay and build a life here, adapting and being able to connect socially in Dutch matters a lot — even if the professional world itself is very international.”

Later, her job at Sanquin gave her the chance to use Dutch every day. “Honestly, it wasn't great Dutch at first, but speaking it daily got me to a point where people could understand me just fine.” When it came to finding her current position, however, Dutch wasn't a requirement.

“If your goal is to stay in the Netherlands long-term, I'd say Dutch matters more than people expect — not necessarily for the job itself, but for feeling at home, building friendships and fully integrating. In practice, Dutch wasn't a blocker in finding my current role.”

Today, Cristina works as a Research Technician I at Lemba Therapeutics. The company focuses on RNA research and has an international team, an environment that feels familiar to her. “It honestly feels a lot like being back at HAN. I feel understood and at home there.”

What Cristina enjoys most about her role is the combination of hands-on laboratory work and research. She gets to develop her own experiments alongside the practical work, rather than focusing only on repetitive technical tasks.

“That mix is what makes it fun for me. A lot of technician roles lean heavily on repetitive tasks, which works for some people, but for me, having a research component is what makes the job genuinely exciting.”

Her Life Sciences Bachelor still plays a role in her everyday work. Cristina says she draws on more of her coursework than she expected and particularly values the practical approach and internships at HAN University of Applied Sciences.

“I really think HAN's practical, hands-on approach is close to ideal for the kind of applied lab work I do now. The internships gave me a real sense of what a Dutch work environment looks and feels like before I ever stepped into one, which made the transition into my current job much smoother.”

And although Cristina didn't arrive at HAN with a clear career plan, she left with more than a degree.

“HAN holds a special place in my heart. I made one of my best friends there, felt truly seen and understood, and grew so much as a person during that time — more social, more confident, more myself. “