I completed a BSc and MSc in Agricultural Sciences (majoring in Crop Science) at the University of Kiel, Germany. I continued with my doctoral research at the Department of Molecular Phytopathology and Biotechnology under the supervision of Prof Dr Daguang Cai at the University of Kiel, where I studied the molecular host-parasite interaction between canola and the fungal pathogens Leptosphaeria maculans and Sclerotinia sclerotiorum. After I completed my doctoral thesis with the highest honours, I worked at a canola breeding company for two years as a Molecular Breeding Scientist in Trait Discovery before I joined the Batley Lab as a Postdoctoral Research Associate. I have profound expertise in molecular plant-parasite interactions, quantitative and qualitative genetics, bioinformatics, and complex plant genomics. My research at the Batley Lab is focused on identifying novel quantitative and qualitative resistance in Brassica species against the blackleg disease (L. maculans).