One of the main insecurities I had working in the lab before this summer was feeling lost in the techniques and rationale of the experiments. I couldn’t see the purpose of the assays or could only understand how they worked individually. To grasp the greater picture of the work takes time and practice. This is something I could do a lot during these two months. I had time to sit down with my mentor and ask questions, participate in journal clubs, and repeat experiments until I felt confident. Although 8 weeks go by quickly, I can say it was a great start to my scientific journey. I still have more questions than answers, but I know where to start searching for them.
BSURF has also been great for my social connections. I’ll take the career advice and life experiences from the professors and their talks with me when looking for new opportunities and making new decisions in the future. I feel more assured about my career prospects now after hearing their stories filled with success, failure, luck, and a lot of fun. I could see in the way they talked how much they enjoyed their research. I want to be able to say that about myself in the future as well.
I thoroughly enjoyed the weekend outings and just spending time with my new friends that also have a fascination for Biology, whether it was watching movies, getting boba, canoeing, or having a potluck. It has been an exciting summer and I want to thank everyone that made it special for me and I hope BSURF can continue to engage Biology enthusiasts in the year to come.
