Indiana INTERNnet celebrated internship excellence on Feb. 3, 2016, at the 10th Annual IMPACT Awards luncheon. Though the event is over and the winners have been announced, we are continuing to celebrate the nomineesā successes.
These are their stories.
Emily Atkinson is a senior at IUPUI, graduating this May. She plans to continue her education and earn a Ph.D. in Anatomy and Cell Biology.
Indiana INTERNnet: In what fields of science are you specializing? What made you interested in pursuing those?
Emily Atkinson: Iām currently majoring in Health and Rehabilitation Sciences. I love learning about how the human body works and different rehabilitation exercises that help make the body healthy after injury. Specifically, I am interested in the skeletal system andĀ aging-induced bone fragility. I currently work at Indiana University School of Medicine in the Anatomy andĀ Cell Biology Department in a research lab that studies osteoporosis and factors contributing to the disease.
IIN: In all seriousnessā¦ is working with mice gross?
Atkinson: No, working with mice is not gross! Mice used for research are kept in sterile environments, and I have never minded working with them. Mice are essential to multiple research projects and help find cures for illnesses.
IIN: You co-authored an abstract that was selected for plenary presentation at the 2015 Annual Meeting of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research. How much work went into that?
Atkinson: I have been working on that project for a year and a half! That was my first project as an intern, and I am stillĀ working on it today as a lab technician. This has been my most satisfying project so far since I have been involved inĀ each step of the progress. I was extremely proud our abstract was selected to be shown at an international conference. More importantly, I was thankful to be given a chance to present our work, and I will always be thankful for the experience.
Atkinson accepts her nomination for Intern of the Year.
IIN: What are one or two other projects that really allowed you to grow?
Atkinson: Just recently, I was given the opportunity to be a first author for one of the projects our lab is working on. WorkingĀ on this project allows meĀ completeĀ most of the bench work, write the abstract, present the poster, and write a scientific research article. More interestingly, I experience all of theĀ troubleshootingĀ and decide which steps to take next.Ā This allows me to grow as a scientist and develop my critical thinking skills, which I will need for my future career.
IIN: You also helped train newer interns in the lab. What was it like being on the other side of the mentor-mentee relationship?
Atkinson: I love being a mentor for interns in the lab. I never thought I would enjoy teaching so much. Last summer I had the opportunity to mentor a high school student on my own research project. She started out with very little knowledge of anatomy or skeletal biology, and I have loved teaching someone the beginnings of a science field. Watching her grow and develop confidence as a scientist has been one of my favorite research experiences thus far.
