City College of New York

Research Assistant

May - August 2018 • New York City, NY

What I liked

The best aspect of this internship was the variety of activities that I was able to participate in and contribute to. These activities primarily dealt with topics in Neuroscience and Molecular Biology and were very broad scoping in nature. Being able to see the contrast between pursuits I found stimulating and the others that I felt were unenjoyable was very valuable. Working with graduate students was somewhat stressful but nonetheless had its perks: their knowledge and advice has helped me to develop as both a person and a scientist.

What I wish was different

I wish that I had engaged more with certain research papers during the discussion board meetings. My crew attended these meetings, which were about certain journal articles selected throughout the summer period, and I regret not doing more thorough research on the articles and the meaning behind some of the concepts. While I have not had that experience yet (these were very specialized graduate students working on specialized areas for Parkinson's disease), I do feel there was more I could have done.

Advice

Oftentimes, especially following the initial introductions and tour, those interning you might begin to become frustrated when you have questions or remarks about how to do something better or more efficiently. They may not necessarily show this but it is sometimes the case that they may view you as a burden. I do not believe this happened to me; I really worked hard to make sure that I was competent and didn't need to consistently go back to my supervisor. This afforded them more time to do their own work and I think that they appreciated it. If I made a mistake, which I did, I made sure not to make it again. Even though it may be difficult, going that extra mile to make good impressions usually works out in your favor.

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