I have enjoyed my time in the Health Sciences Research Fellowship, and am grateful for the opportunity I have had. This fellowship experience has been different than my previous experiences due to the specific nature of this fellowship. By being made up of only health sciences projects, I felt that I was able to better connect the different projects to the work that I am doing, while also being much more familiar with what each project entails. I felt this led to more productive conversations and idea flows when discussing the fellowship’s work as a whole.
While I have been working in my lab for over a year now, this summer was the first time where I really ran into problems of my own and had to figure out solutions myself. This was a result of independently working on a project, and as such I was left to endure the highs and lows on my own. From this experience I truly learned what it takes to be a researcher. More often than not your experiments will not go right, the protocol won’t always be followed, and you will always be thinking of ways to solve a new problem. This constant adaptation is the nature of research and should be embraced, as this is one of the reasons research so interesting. I realized that it is important to not be let these problems dissuade you, but to continue to work towards the goal you set out to accomplish.
I feel the connections I made have been the most valuable takeaway from my HSRF experience. Having the opportunity to connect with my peers and discuss the different types of research that is being conducted at the university has been fascinating. It is also nice to be able to talk with peers who are experiencing a common set of struggles and difficulties. This allows use to support each other and it reminds us that we are not alone in our experiences. Additionally, the opportunity to listen to the guest speakers and the knowledge and experiences that they shared revealed a lot about the academic research landscape. As a result of these conversations, I feel I now have a better understanding of what research looks like in regard to my particular goals, and the path required to get to that point.
After this fellowship I hope to continue my work within my lab. I will also need to decide if I want to attend medical school or graduate school.
