Martin Jinek studied Chemistry and Natural Sciences at Trinity College, University of Cambridge. In 2006, he received his PhD from the European Molecular Biology Laboratory in Heidelberg where he conducted his thesis in the lab of Elena Conti. He then moved to the University of California in Berkeley for postdoctoral research with Jennifer Doudna. Jinek is interested in the molecular mechanisms that orchestrate cellular regulation through protein-RNA interactions. His studies include biochemical and structural approaches to investigate these processes at the atomic level.