This month, we are delighted to introduce Attiq Ur Rehman who comes from Pakistan. He was part of emPLANT Intake 1 (2018-2020).

He studied at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences in Sweden during his first academic year and at the University of Helsinki in Finland during his second academic year.

🌱 From emPLANT to PhD and Research Scientist at Luke

After graduating in 2020 from emPLANT, I joined the Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke) and I have been working there ever since. emPLANT gave me the right platform to begin a doctorate at the University of Helsinki, where most of my work focused on the implementation of genomic tools for strawberry pre-breeding. During my PhD, my springs and summers were filled with field and greenhouse trials and long days of collecting and processing phenotyping datasets. During the dark Finnish winters, I spent numerous evenings running statistical models in R, trying to understand complex traits from as many angles as possible and analyzing genomic data. What kept me motivated was the thought that the tools I was trying to build could genuinely help plant breeders make more informed and faster decisions.

My current role as a Research Scientist grew very naturally from the scientific ecosystem that emPLANT introduced me to, and it has given me many opportunities to grow as a researcher. The work I do today feels like a natural continuation of my PhD and a reflection of the broad and interdisciplinary training I received during emPLANT.

🌍 Living and Studying Across Borders

What I enjoyed the most was the feeling that the world suddenly became much bigger and much closer at the same time. Studying and living in both Sweden and Finland gave me the chance to experience completely different cultures than mine, teaching styles and ways of thinking. But the real treasure was the people; emPLANT brought together mates from all over the world, and I believe we made life‑long connections very quickly.

The multicultural environment that emPLANT offered has shaped me more than any traditional masters ever could. I learned how to communicate, how to appreciate different ways of approaching life and science, and the best part is that these friendships did not end when the program ended. Today, if I travel anywhere in Europe, there is almost always someone I can meet, someone I can stay with, someone I can catch up with over coffee or dinner.

💬 Advice to New emPLANT+ Students

If I could give one piece of advice to new emPLANT students, it would be this: be brave, stay proactive and build networks. This program will surround you with people from all over the world, and every single one of them has something to teach you. Try to engage with others even when a conversation seems unexciting at first, because those small moments often lead to the best opportunities and friendships.

Never be afraid to ask questions; emPLANT will challenge you in ways you do not expect, but it will also teach you things you cannot learn anywhere else: independence, resilience, confidence and the ability to find joy in the unknown.

✨ Fun Fact

Most people do not know this, but when I first accepted the opportunity to join Luke, I had never seen a strawberry plant in real life (Oops!). Strawberries simply do not grow in the region of Pakistan where I spent my life, so my entire understanding of the plant came from fruit boxes and photos 😀

Yet on 7th November 2025, there I was at the University of Helsinki, defending my PhD on strawberry pre breeding for Nordics (as seen in the picture). The plant I had never actually seen a few years earlier had become the center of my scientific world.

So, here is the fun part, and also the motivational part:
“you do not need to start as an expert to become one”
And to me, that is a proof that unexpected beginnings can lead to very good endings!

Attiq Ur Rehman

📍 From Pakistan 🇵🇰 → Finland 🇫🇮

🎓 First emPLANT Intake (2018–2020)