Kerlen got his first university degree at the University of Groningen in the Lifescience and Technology Bachelor and then enrolled in the Biomolecular Sciences Master program. He then obtained a second master degree from the Radboud University in Nijmegen in Philosophy.

Kerlen has a strong background in computational biology research: his experience ranges from biophysical modeling to multi-omics data analysis. In our lab, he will apply and build on this skill set for the engineering of enzymes applied in novel high-throughput protein engineering systems.