By summerstudent Maitryi Gupta >
I still vividly remember the day when I received the mail regarding my selection in ISSP 2025. I was elated and overjoyed. Soon reality seeped in, and excitement turned into anxiety. I had heard that Germans are strict, punctual, extremely organised and very particular about everything. It was enough to make me question whether I’d fit in or be able to work properly in the lab.
Fast forward to my first day at HZB, I met the other students, everyone was so warm and welcoming. We had great conversations, laughed a lot, and it immediately felt like a place where I could belong.
After formal introduction session and lunch, I met one of the postdocs from my group: Maddalena. She took me to office and showed the labs, explaining everything with great enthusiasm. Just as I was starting to relax, she mentioned that our group will have beamtime next week which meant rush in terms of completing the necessary trainings. My nerves spiked again: rush through everything? Already??
The next day, we had a group meeting and safety training. I finally entered the lab and met Dr. Marcel Risch, the head of the group. He was very particular about every detail and my fears returned. “Maybe I can’t do this,” I thought. “Maybe I’m not good enough.” For a moment, I just wanted to run away but I was committed to give my best.
From being overwhelmed to owning the lab
The following day, Dr. Risch clearly explained what I had to do and recommended some relevant papers that I should read. I went to the lab with Chuanmu, who patiently explained everything. I am working on the “Activation of Stainless-Steel electrodes.” I assemble an electrochemical cell and study the electrode under various parameters to see where we get the highest Oxygen Evolution Reaction. To my surprise, I understood what was going on! With some guidance and encouragement, I could assemble my first electrochemical cell which gave me a great sense of achievement. Motivated, I tried to repeat the process alone but failed. However, I was determined to not give up. After some trial and error, I did it and this time it worked!
Trial and error
A few days later, I sent my “not so great” experimental readings to Dr. Risch with some disappointment. The next day, I walked into the lab and saw Dr. Risch already there, checking my setup. He calmly helped me troubleshoot and gave me a reassuring, “It’s okay, we’ll figure it out” and we did. We got consistent experimental results.
Through trial, error, and support from my group, I have become more confident. Now, I can analyse data and troubleshoot basic problems. It’s been an intense hands-on learning experience, not just in electrochemistry but in developing critical thinking while questioning everything, being patient, and learning from mistakes.
Today, I’m no longer scared of Dr. Risch or the lab. In fact, now I’m the one always asking questions, and both he and Chuanmu patiently guide me. To my surprise, the things I feared most are the ones I have loved learning about. They taught me the importance of doing things systematically, documenting everything properly, and following correct procedures.
I am not as clueless anymore. And I look forward to being less and less clueless every day.
For future ISSP participants, the biggest lesson I have learnt is: Everyone feels overwhelmed at first. It’s okay to be scared. Just don’t stop asking for help or accepting the things you don’t know. That’s how you grow and learn!
At last, I would like to thank the CE-NOME group (Dr. Marcel Risch, Maddalena, Chuanmu, Felipe, Marlena, Yaohao, Giacomo, Carla, Umair, Bruno, Younes) for your constant support and warm welcome.
About the author: Maitryi Gupta is an undergraduate student at Delhi Technological University pursuing Chemical Engineering. She has a keen interest in green technologies. Currently at HZB, she is part of the CE-NOME group and investigates the “Activation of Stainless-Steel Electrodes”.