A summer in STEM: CNAS students share their summer research experiences abroad
A summer in STEM: CNAS students share their summer research experiences abroad
A summer in STEM: CNAS students share their summer research experiences abroad
9/1/2023
From studying the blue blood of horseshoe crabs to comparing the on-the-job environments
of the medical, nursing, and dental professions, CNAS students and recent graduates
gained valuable and life-changing experiences at a variety of internships and research
programs this past summer. They attended programs throughout the United States as
far north as the Arctic, learning from accomplished science researchers at prestigious
universities and institutions.
Several shared their summers in STEM with us in hopes of inspiring other UOG students
to follow in their footsteps.
Joselle Garcia in the dental clinic at University of Texas
Joselle Garcia Major: Biology – Bio-Medical Program: Summer Health Professions Education Program Location: University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
What did you work on during your internship?
I explored the medical, dental, and nursing fields in a period of six weeks and gained
plenty of hands-on experience.
What was the most memorable moment from the program?
The most memorable moment from the program was when we were able to view human cadavers
and many different types of organs at the McGovern Medical School.
Did this program have an impact on your academic path or future career plans?
Participating in SHPEP has strengthened my desire to continue my path toward becoming
a physician.
Would you recommend this program for other UOG students?
SHPEP is a great program for UOG students to consider during the summer. It is open
to college freshmen and sophomores who are considered ethnically underrepresented.
Edina Lee on the Stanford University campus.
Edina Lee Major: Biology – Bio-Medical Program: Cardiovascular Institute Summer Research Program Location: Stanford Cardiovascular Institute (Calif.)
What did you work on during your internship?
The CVI program allows students to be engaged in cardiovascular research, and my research
lab mainly focused on tissue culture and DNA cloning.
What was the most memorable moment from the program?
The most memorable moment from the program is the symposium. I was also able to proudly
present my research that my direct mentor and I worked intensely on to all the CVI
members.
Did this program have an impact on your academic path or future career plans?
This program allowed me to consider a M.D./Ph.D. program and research in cardiology.
Would you recommend this program for other UOG students?
This program would be an amazing opportunity for other UOG students to look into,
especially if they are going into a Ph.D. or M.D. path focused on stem cell biology
or cardiology in the future.
(From left) Dr. Jian Yang, Sophie Santos, Dr. Byron Chaves (UNL), and Lara Mazloum
at the 2023 IAFP Conference in Toronto.
Lara Mazloum Major: ALS – Nutrition & Food Science Program: Food Safety Scholar Internship Location: University of Nebraska-Lincoln
What did you work on during your internship?
My project was to mine U.S. Food & Drug Administration data to assess compliance among
small and very small businesses in Good Manufacturing Practices. My data can be used
to relay the barriers our local producers may have [in compliance] and how we can
tackle them in the future.
What was the most memorable moment from the program?
We had the great opportunity to attend the International Association of Food Protection
Conference in Toronto, Canada, where I learned more about the importance of food safety.
Did this program have an impact on your academic path or future career plans?
While this program didn’t directly change my plans in becoming a registered dietitian,
it provided me more insight on how food safety has a close correlation with nutrition
by primarily focusing on the overall health of our consumers.
Would you recommend this program for other UOG students?
I recommend this internship to other UOG students looking to do more independent work
that focuses more on extension rather than laboratory. This internship was a great
way to challenge my capability to build a project independently while still receiving
some guidance along the way.
Loreto Paulino Jr. collects a water sample in Alaska.
Loreto Paulino Jr. UOG Degree: ’23 B.S. Chemistry Program: Woodwell Climate Research Center’s Polaris Project Location: Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, Alaska, and Falmouth, Mass.
What did you work on during your internship?
I conducted research on beavers and how they affect carbon flow and fluxes within
an aquatic network.
What was the most memorable moment from the program?
The field work! The field work was so much fun, but not because it was easy. It was
hard and cold, but very rewarding.
Did this program have an impact on your academic path or future career plans?
Yes, I've met a lot of people who made me believe that I can be a field researcher.
I learned that I have what it takes given that I can handle such harsh terrains to
collect vital samples.
Would you recommend this program for other UOG students?
Yes! This program would enlighten you in so many ways. The learning experience is
once-in-a-lifetime.
I worked with Dr. Sook Chung to study the blue blood of Limulus polyphemus (horseshoe crabs). We investigated the copper-oxygen binding mechanism that produces
the blue color, the coagulation process, and the protein factors responsible.
What was the most memorable moment from the program?
I got to raise horseshoe crabs from embryo to tail development. It was extremely satisfying
to see a month of hard work and animal husbandry procedures come successful.
Did this program have an impact on your academic path or future career plans?
Absolutely! My mentors at the program offered me a spot in their labs if I wanted
to pursue a master’s in biology at IMET.
Would you recommend this program for other UOG students?
I would absolutely recommend this program for any biology major, regardless if their
final interest is in marine biology. The faculty were stellar in building my confidence
in the lab setting.
Gabby Prelosky at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Mass.
Gabby Prelosky UOG Degree: ’23 B.S. Biology Program: Woods Hole Partnership Education Program Location:Woods Hole, Mass.
What did you work on during your internship?
In order to better understand shark development and biology, I took a microscopic
look at how the chain catshark develops its electroreceptor (ampullary) organs.
What was the most memorable moment from the program?
Meeting the PEP23 cohort and my lab and whale watching in Provincetown, Mass. My cohort
was a family away from family, and whale watching was definitely a once in a lifetime
opportunity.
Did this program have an impact on your academic path or future career plans?
This internship helped me realize that I am ready to pursue higher education and continue
down the road of marine and shark biology and that this is what I am meant to do.
Would you recommend this program for other UOG students?
This program would be excellent for UOG students to look into and apply. The six institutions
supporting PEP offer diverse and amazing opportunities.
Sophie Santos (left) and Lara Mazloum at the University Nebraska-Lincoln Food Innovation
Center over the summer of 2023.
Sophie Santos Major: ALS – Nutrition & Food Science Program: Food Safety Scholar Internship Location: University of Nebraska-Lincoln
What did you work on during your internship?
My project was a survey on our local food producers on Guam that specifically assesses
their compliance with current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMPs) and their food
safety training needs and preferences.
What was the most memorable moment from the program?
My most memorable moment from the program/internship was when we went to Toronto,
Canada, for the IAFP 2023 Conference.
Did this program have an impact on your academic path or future career plans?
Although my career plans haven’t changed, I will definitely say that this experience
significantly expanded my knowledge of food safety and its importance to our health.
Would you recommend this program for other UOG students?
I would recommend this internship program to students looking to do extension work.
Nico Valencia at the Henry Samueli School of Engineering & Applied Sciences at the
University of California, Irvine
Nico Valencia Major: Biology – Bio-Medical Program: Bruins-In-Genomics (B.I.G.) Summer Research Program Location: University of California, Los Angeles
What did you work on during your internship?
I did a computational analysis of protein and gene pathways to find drugs that can
be used to treat commonly co-occurring psychiatric disorders.
What was the most memorable moment from the program?
The most memorable part of this program was the night before everyone left. Me and
my friends gathered on the hill next to the Janss Steps (L.A.) and just talked about
life, our plans, and how we were all amazed that the program was already over.
Did this program have an impact on your academic path or future career plans?
Being able to participate in this program really introduced me to so many amazing
future peers in computational biology. Meeting so many people active in this field
of research has solidified my academic goal of entering a Ph.D. program focused on
computational biology.
Would you recommend this program for other UOG students?
Yes, I think that UOG students should look into this program. Computational biology
is a field of research that is beginning to take off, so to be able to jump into it
now is to get into an exciting field with countless paths to follow.
