Professor Vinet Coetzee started doing research at the University of Pretoria (UP) in 2011 as part of her postdoctoral studies, and has been a permanent staff member since 2015. As the Principal Investigator for the Facial Morphology Research Group, she collaborates with researchers in health sciences, engineering, computer science, chemistry and food science, as well as with industry role players and NGOs.
Prof Coetzee’s research is focused on developing better diagnostic methods for a variety of conditions in Africa. The research group has several new projects underway, all of which centre on developing novel diagnostic methods for diseases such as malaria, COVID-19 and congenital conditions. “If we can get these technologies to market, it would provide more affordable, faster ways of testing for the conditions mentioned as well as a variety of others,” she says.
Prof Coetzee credits all her academic supervisors, “who have shaped me tremendously”. She says she wants to make a difference in the world, and that her research matters because it can lead to early detection of disease, thereby saving people’s lives.
Her advice to students is to follow their passion – and to keep going.