Sure, tomorrow is only the beginning of the semester and a potential snowstorm is in the weekend forecast, but it’s that time of year to start thinking about summer plans. We’re not talking about sunning on the beach, although that is tempting given the recent frigid temperatures. We’re talking about starting your summer internship search.
To get you started, we have a series of students who will talk about what they did in summer 2015. First up is Jasper Du:
This past summer, I conducted research in the lab of Ira Tabas at the Columbia University Medical Center. I worked on several projects during my time here. The two major projects concerned the role of Tregs in the resolution of inflammation in both acute lung injury and atherosclerosis.
We were able to show that both in vitro and in vivo (mice), that Tregs increased macrophage efferocytosis, a process in which dead cells are phagocytosed by macrophages. This process prevents inflammation from persisting.
Although I had done research before, all the experiments I conducted in this lab were entirely new. As my PI put it, it was like drinking water from a fire hydrant. In addition, I mostly completed my experiments by myself, but definitely made mistakes along the way, which is ok! I was quite happy that my supervisor allowed me to work on my own and make my own mistakes, as this was the easiest way to learn.
My overall goal in this internship was to be persuaded to pursue the M.D./Ph.D. route. I took advantage of hearing different viewpoints from graduate students, post-doctoral fellows, and faculty. Networking was key, as each person gave me valuable professional experience and referred me to others to gain a different perspective. Now, I believe that the M.D./Ph.D. path will provide me with both the right training and mindset to excel in any disease related field.
Still, I want to ensure that I enjoy doing clinical work. To accomplish this, I will pursue shadowing opportunities for at least a few weeks, or whenever I get the chance in order to give me a tangible clinical experience.
I found this internship in high school after emailing numerous professors that were conducting interesting research. At the time, I was too young to work in his lab (<18), because of radiation. After several years of inquiry, he finally gave me the green light to work in his laboratory.
For those looking to obtain a similar internship, I would start by finding what interests you scientifically, and then look for professors at Tufts (Medford/Boston campuses) that match your interests. Alternatively, you can look at each professor’s research overview page, read a journal or two, and see if you are interested. Also, you can search for professors near your hometown, as I did.
A fume hood, used for preventing contamination for any cell culture experiments
Leave a Reply