Charlottesville, Virginia: University of Virgina -Spencer

This summer, I spent seven weeks in Charlottesville, Virginia working in a biochemistry and molecular genetics lab focusing on cancer research.  It was a fantastic learning experience.  I consider myself very fortunate to have had this opportunity.  I lived with family in the area and it was because of their connections that I had this opportunity to work in a very successful lab at the University of Virginia.

What I enjoyed most about the internship was learning how to actually do things that I had learned about in school.  It's one thing to learn about Northern Blotting, it's another to harvest your own cells, prepare the samples, run a gel, and develop your very own blots.  That is what I liked most.  The experience further cemented processes I have learned about but it also made it much more interesting to me.  I am way more interested in Molecular Biology now than I was when I took the class, for example.

In the lab, I worked with a post doc who helped me considerably.  He was working on studying TIP60, and indirect cancer suppressant.  I worked side by side with him and conducted my own experiments regarding a similar protein--a cousin to TIP60--called hMOF.  I found it very beneficial to run my own hypothesis and my own experiments.  I was able to watch a mentor conduct similar experiments, and then I was able to apply it to my own work.

Another benefit for me was simply being able to observe people work.  I am currently trying to really discover what I want to do in life, and I think that can be a very hard decision.  It was invaluable to me to watch first-hand what researchers actually do--what their daily routine is like.  I was able to talk to PhD students and medical school students.  I talked a lot with my supervisor and the lab manager regarding careers.  This interaction was probably the most valuable of the whole experience.

In short, my experience was fantastic and helped me in multiple ways.

For more information visit  http://www.medicine.virginia.edu/education/phd/gpo/srip/home-page.

Idaho Falls, ID -Chase LfSci 199R Summer Experience

I spent the last six weeks participating in the lifescience 199 class by interning for one of my local physical therapists. The experience was very rewarding, despite all of the new learning techniques there are these days, there is still nothing better than hands on experience. Especially for people like me who are still mulling over career decisions, the opportunity to get in an actual clinic and watch therapists do day to day work is extremely helpful in making decisions about the future. A lot can be learned in a classroom setting but there comes a time where the real life experience is extremely vital. this class provides an opportunity to do some real experiencing and receive credit for it. it is and excellent program and definitely worth the time.

For more information visit  http://www.ellisphysicaltherapy.com/.

Debre Zeit, Ethiopia: Engage Now Africa Internship -Logan

I completed an internship with a nongovernmental organization called Engage Now Africa. The internship was based in Debre Zeit, Ethiopia. Debre Zeit is located about an hour south of the capital of Ethiopia. My duties in the internship included gathering data concerning the humanitarian projects completed in the villages, volunteering and shadowing at the local hospital, and teaching English at a local school. It was a very engaging and interesting internship that helped me develop understanding of foreign health care and aid.

            My wife and I arrived in Ethiopia and were trained by Diana Bingham who is the country director of Engage Now Africa (ENA) in Ethiopia. We were introduced to the local staff and situated into our housing. After a day of training, Diana left to go back to America and we went to work. It was difficult to get started at first due to the Ethiopian staff. We immediately learned that the Ethiopian culture is very laid back in meeting deadlines. We would often plan our day full of activities and only accomplish a handful due to Ethiopian culture. ENA has built schools, sanitary wells, and health posts throughout the villages surrounding Debre Zeit. It was our job to travel to these projects and collect data, testimonials, and pictures that could be utilized to produce results for the donors of ENA. We were able to travel to a lot of projects and collect a lot of data and pictures. It was great to see all the good that has been done due to ENA’s efforts. There were many villages that had gone without a school until ENA came and built the school. After the school was built it was handed over to the government, which would then higher teachers to run the school. Thousands of children are now able to attend school thanks to ENA. Wells were also dug by ENA, which has helped decrease the amount of disease due to unclean water. ENA drills for water and then sets up a pump and caps the well to prevent contamination. ENA also has set up health posts throughout the villages, which brings medical help to the people. Villagers can travel to these health posts and receive basic healthcare that would normally cause death without care.

            My wife and I were also able to teach English at a local school in Debre Zeit. The national language in Ethiopia is Amharic. The villagers rarely speak English but they need to know English in order to be employed in Ethiopia. We were able to teach English at a school. The children were more than willing to learn the language to get ahead in life. We did a lot of exercises and played a lot of English learning games. By the end of the internship the children were able to carry out a basic conversation with someone on the street. Hopefully this spark of learning will motivate them to continue to learn the language and get ahead in life.

            I am a premedical student, so I wanted to get some insight on the health care system in Ethiopia. I was able to arrange with the Debre Zeit hospital a shadowing and volunteering opportunity. Every day I would spend a few hours in the hospital shadowing different doctors. I saw a lot of typhoid, HIV, and malaria. There were also a lot of car accidents, fighting injuries, and abuse. I saw a lot of cases that I would not be able to see in America. I was also able to clean parts of the hospital and make lots of gauze. The doctors are educated and employed by the government. The government pays the doctors very little to work at the hospitals. To make more money the doctors usually work at a private practice and spend little time at the hospital. Due to this issue, the nurses see most of the patients at the hospital. I feel the health care system can be improved in Ethiopia by training the doctors, donating new equipment, and helping reform government health care services.

            This internship helped me get a better perspective of the world. I enjoyed meeting different types of people along the way and learning from their strengths. I learned that there is much good that can be done throughout the world. There are basic needs that every human should have met and I feel like there are many people not getting the necessities. 

If you are interested in Engage Now Africa, here is the link: http://www.engagenowafrica.org/