I’m in a somewhat unusual position, because my experience in the Tung lab will last beyond the summer. I already knew Dr. Tung, and had asked her permission to register for an independent study course in her lab this fall, before we were matched by the HHRF program. So I hope that my project this summer will help me explore various aspects of lab work and choose a direction in which to take my independent study in the fall. In particular, I hope to learn about wet-lab work, statistical analysis, coding, and the research process, since I have little or no prior experience with these skills.
At this point in college, when any threat of the real world is still pretty far away, we’re encouraged to major in something that we’re passionate about, something that we love to study. Unfortunately, this doesn’t always translate to loving the careers associated with a field. I have some conceptual background in the subject matter from Dr. Tung’s seminar, and now I want to see how studying social status in a real animal population is different from learning about it in a classroom.
I want to learn about the career paths associated with scientific research, because I think I am interested in pursuing a career in academia, but I don’t know much about the other options for biology majors. I hope to get to know the other people in the lab and hear about their career trajectories. I also hope that the faculty seminars hosted by the HHRF programs will give me an idea of what paths I could follow after my undergraduate years.
I’m excited to hear from the faculty speakers about their research. Dr. Grunwald will be bringing in faculty from many different areas within the field of biology. Many of these fields, like engineering or clinical research, I know almost nothing about. I’m excited to learn new things, and maybe I’ll discover something that I want to learn more about in the future.
Here I am in the lab! I’m preparing a qPCR plate.
