As we all know, the Brackenridge Fellowship aims to converge a wide variety of disciplines, having each student exposed to areas of research unlike their own. This is extremely beneficial, enabling young researchers the ability to deeply analyze and examine how research is done, and not just in their specific field.

In my cohort, I’ve had the pleasure to learn from Harsh, who is looking into the biochemical pathways that outline ischemic stroke risk in individuals of African descent; Adam, who is studying the impact of sea levels on current day English housing market trends; Grace, who is interested in how major depressive disorder (MDD) impacts the structure of the temporal lobe; and finally, Connor, where he is analyzing the formulations of what it means to “be American” throughout history.

This beautiful mix of disciplines in my cohort is something I’m vastly excited about; it’s something that inspired me to apply for the Brackenridge Fellowship, as this exact fellowship focuses on it! From both Adam and Connor’s studies, I hope to learn the methods of research used in economic and humanity aspects, respectively. I’ve yearned for this knowledge for quite some time, and I’m glad to have the Brackenridge to introduce me to it.

Though Grace and I are studying something purely medical, Harsh is observing medicine in the lens of a minority community. I’m excited to learn how he analyzes his topic, specifically toning into a community.

It’s valuable to learn and expose yourself to fields outside of your own, as aforementioned. There may be some learning obstacles, as comes with anything new to yourself, but a great researcher will take on that challenge and branch out!