Name:Yaw Owusu-Boaitey
Internship, Co-op or Research Site:Colorado State University Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) in Molecular Biosciences
Position Title: Research Intern
Major(s)/Minor(s):Biological Sciences
Work Term:Summer 2018
Tell us about your internship, co-op, or research opportunity, including your day-to-day responsibilities.
I had a phenomenal experience in the Colorado State REU in Molecular Biosciences in summer 2018. I had the pleasure of working in the lab of Dr. Erin Osborne Nishimura as part of my first long-term research experience through the REU. My project assessed the impact of two common E. coli dietary sources on the health and behavior of the free-living nematode worm Caenorhabditis elegans, an unexpectedly charming model organism of study with many useful and fascinating characteristics.My day-to-day responsibilities included media making for the worms and bacteria, worm transfer between various agar plates and growth conditions for experimentation purposes, counting worm populations, conducting protocols to stain for fat levels within the worms, tracking worm movement, and creating weekly reports and updates for my work.
Describe the process of obtaining your position. When did you hear of the position and submit your application?
As a student in the Meyerhoff Scholars Program at UMBC, I received lots of guidance in applying for summer internships, including help with drafting personal statements and a resume. The UMBC Writing Center and Career Center were also instrumental during the revision process for my application materials.I began to research summer 2018 internship positions as early as fall 2017, mostly utilizing resources from the Research Opportunities webpage on the UMBC Undergraduate Research website. I submitted my applications in January 2018, since most summer research internships I applied to had deadlines in February and March 2018.
What have you enjoyed the most about your position or organization?
Every aspect of the REU program was phenomenal and far exceeded my expectations. My lab members were incredibly friendly and knowledgeable, and the people I met in the program and in other labs at Colorado State helped me to develop as a research scientist. This development remains incredibly important to me, since I intend to pursue a graduate research degree in developmental biology or molecular genetics. Through the REU, I strengthened my understanding of developmental biology as well as my professional skills. The opportunity to spend ten weeks away from home developing my passion for research also provided me with the space to grow personally and learn about a school that I will consider attending for graduate studies. Lastly, and most importantly, I thoroughly enjoyed working with C. elegans, and its usefulness as a model organism continues to constantly fascinate me. For example, adult C. elegans worms have exactly 959 cells, and researchers know exactly when each cell type will arise during development. The worms take only four days to grow from embryo to adult. They can even be frozen indefinitely and brought back to life!
How do you believe you have made an impact through your work?
My particular project was one that lacks comprehensive study in labs that use C. elegans as a model organism. Most labs culture worms on agar plates seeded with the OP50 E. coli strain as a diet for the worms. If labs want to grow very large quantities of worms, a thicker-growing strain of E. coli, NA22, is instead provided as a diet for the worms. These two E. coli strains are often used interchangeably in C. elegans studies, and worm health under the two diets is largely assumed to be similar. However, sensitive genomics assays, quantitative experiments, or investigations into behavior or intestinal biology may be confounded by even subtle differences in worm development. Thus, we aimed to quantify effects of the two food sources on three key worm phenotypes: worm brood size, intestinal fat deposit levels, and motility. My project excited me and made me feel that I made a worthwhile impact in C. elegans research.
What advice would you give to another student who is seeking an internship or similar experience?
I would advise students to visit the Career Center, Undergraduate Research website, and other campus resources to browse opportunities they are interested in and keep track of deadlines well ahead of time (for internship applications, 3-4 months ahead of deadlines). I would also advise students to make appointments with the Career Center and Writing Center on campus to prepare the strongest possible application materials, including statements, resumes, and requests for letters of recommendation.
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Dear Members of the UMBC Community,
As we announced earlier this month, a procurement committee of faculty, staff, and students has selected consultants Jody Shipper, J.D., and Cherie Scricca, Ed.D. of Grand River Solutions, Inc.to help UMBC address how our community can better prevent and respond to sexual violence/misconduct. This marks an important next step in our Retriever Courage initiative, in addition to early action steps completed by Retriever Courage partners.
On February 7, Shipper and Scricca will be on the UMBC campus for the first time, to hold initial meetings with the Implementation Team and Title IX staff. In order to give the UMBC community the opportunity to share input,Shipper and Scricca will hold an information gathering session on February 7, from 4 to 5 p.m., in the Proscenium Theatre, Performing Arts and Humanities Building.
Shipper and Scricca will return to UMBC on February 21, 22, and 28, and March 1, for meetings with Retriever Courage partners, as well as with campus groups that they and Retriever Courage partners have identified. Shipper and Scricca will hold another information gathering session for the UMBC community during this time, and we will update the campus when details are confirmed.
For those who prefer not to share publicly or are unable to attend either information gathering session, you may use this anonymous Google form and your feedback will be shared with Shipper and Scricca.
The end is in sight! If you've earned 90 or more academic credits, you received a message from the Registrar's Office informing you that you are eligible to apply for graduation.
However, eligibility is only the start of the graduation application process. Below are four simple steps you can take now to ensure that you’ll soon be shaking hands with Dr. Hrabowski as you receive your UMBC diploma.
Note: Even if you do not plan to attend the commencement ceremony, you still need to apply to graduate in order to earn your degree.
Step 1: Apply for Graduation!
Friday, February 15th is the last day undergraduates can apply for May Graduation.
Only those students who have every single requirement needed for degree completion on their spring semester schedules will be permitted to participate in the Commencement ceremony.
If you are taking a course at another institution that you plan to transfer, you must have an approved Verification of Transferability formon file with the Registrar’s Office and be prepared to submit a copy of your schedule.
Step 2: Embrace your degree audit!
Your degree audit indicates your progress toward degree completion. If you see “unsatisfied” items, these are requirements that need to be addressed immediately. Your degree audit is located on myUMBC, under the guide link “Advising and Student Support.”
Makesure any substitutions or waivers of major requirements are documented in your degree audit; you may need to submit a Help/RT ticket to the Registrar’s Office to add these notations to your record.
Step 3: Wrap up any outstanding details ASAP!
If you have Advanced Placement or CLEP scores, transfer transcripts, 201 lever language substitutions, or other items you need to provide to UMBC, delay no longer! If the major, minor, or certificate program on your record is out of date, or if you have additional majors or minors that you need to remove, submit a new Declaration of Major form. Any of these items could prevent you from being able to graduate.
Step 4: Let the celebration begin!
Participating in the commencement ceremony* and other celebratory activities on campus is the culmination of all of your hard work. Take time to recognize all it took to get you to this moment and be proud of your accomplishments!
Finally, use this link to check your Honors eligibility.
]]>Black History Month is an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing the central role of Blacks in U.S. history. The event grew out of “Negro History Week,” the brainchild of noted historian Carter G. Woodson and other prominent African Americans.
Come celebrate Black History Month with the Mosaic and attend events such as our PawTalk: QueenEarth and QueerCore and What’s The Tea: Black, Queer, and Here! where we will be having a discussion on the intersection of being both Black and queer and how that has impacted the lives of those who identify within those communities.
EventsPawTalks: Queen Earth and Queer Core
February 19, 2019
5:30pm - 7:00pm
Skylight Lounge
BLM Open Mic Night sponsored by the Black Lives Matter
February 20, 2019
8:00pm - 10:00pm
The Commons: Sportszone
What’s The Tea: Black, Queer, and Here!
February 27, 2019
5:30pm - 7:00pm
The Commons: Skylight
PNC
Campus Recruiting is holding two summits in the Spring – one in
Pittsburgh, one in DC. This is a great way to get to know potential
talent and encourage diverse candidates
to strongly consider starting their career at PNC. We really need your
help with sharing this attachment in your networks – refer candidates
or share with your teams who may know of interested students.
Typically, sophomores are the target since we will
flag top candidates at this spring event for intern consideration in
the fall.
Pittsburgh, PA date: March 7-8, 2019
Washington, DC date: March 14-15, 2019
Deadline EXTENDED to apply: 2/10/19
Registration site: http://www.cvent.com/d/fbqt48
Target audience: Sophomores, Juniors, Freshmen (in preferred order)
Students will need to complete an essay and resume to be considered (essay prompt available on the registration site). Qualified applicants receive a virtual interview and the top applicants are invited to attend.
INTERNSHIPS IN Asset Management, Finance & Accounting, Human Resources, Auditing, Operations, Risk Management, and Technology.