Joining the FEZ group as part of the University of Oslo’s (UiO) Summer Research Program, Pia M. Eriksen is a Bachelor of Biosciences student taking part in an on-going museomics (museum collection genetic studies) project. Working alongside project leader, Rita M. Austin, Pia will contribute to the exploration and optimization of recovering ancient DNA from the Oslo Natural History Museum’s (NHM) amphibian and reptile type specimens. She is halfway through her degree, where she’s receiving an education in cell biology, genetics, and programming for bioinformatics. Her educational background provides a solid basis upon which to build the museomics project, focusing on wet-lab, high-throughput sequencing, bioinformatics, and research optimization while working with difficult DNA templates from historic specimens. The project will provide valuable sequence information that can act as genetic references that will help link species’ defining phenotypic characteristics with their genetic information. As Pia continues to advance her academic career focusing on biological systems, this foundational experience provides valuable insight into the complex arena of academic research and publishing.