From the horse's mouth
We asked students participating in the summer funded intership program to tell us about thier experiences in their own words.
More than 70 Skidmore students received financial support this year through the College's summer funded internship program, supported annually by gifts from Skidmore's alumni, parents, friends, and Student Government Association. Settings range from financial institutions and businesses small and large to hospitals, schools and universities, museums, nonprofits, and government agencies.
See the complete list of 2016 internships.
Ahmed Ismael ’18 is a biology major, who, thanks to a gift from the Parents Fund '17, is interning this summer at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in Woodbury, N.Y.
In brief, what is your work?
Under the guidance of Dr. Nicholas Tonks, I investigate the mechanisms underlying Ogden syndrome, using patient-derived, induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) models and mouse histology.
What are the highlights? The surprises?
I really enjoy performing CT scans on the lab mice to discover underlying phenotypes of the disease. While analyzing our previous data, I came to realize that the knockout mice had cervical defects, so I ordered to have more full body scans done. When I examined the new scans, I was able to confirm the vertebral defect and coincidently, stumble upon another mutation.
What's the most important thing you've learned?
In the research field you are constantly learning and discovering new things. However, these discoveries are not found immediately; they can take weeks, months, even years. Working in the lab has really taught me patience and how to effectively apply everything I’ve learned in the lab.
Blair Warren ’17 is apsychology and art history double major from Baltimore, Md., who, thanks to a gift from the Parents Fund '17, is interning this summer with the GoEco Women's Empowerment Program in Kathmandu, Nepal, and with Khmer Institute for National Development (KIND) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
In brief, what was your work?
My work is volunteering in a women's empowerment program in Kathmandu, Nepal. I also help out at an orphanage/disabled home, working with the children on homework, playing with them, and helping prepare meals. For the women, I teach them English. I learn the Nepali words and they enjoy the fact that I'm learning along with them! Teaching them is wonderful, I love their enthusiasm and focus. At the orphanage, the children are so full of love, smiling and laughing constantly. They are also very smart! I help them prepare for upcoming exams and check over their English work.
What are the highlights? The surprises?
The people of Nepal. They are incredible. Everyone is so open and kind, welcoming me into their world. Working with them is an honor. The surprises: I am surprised by how comfortable I feel in a world so different than the one I'm used to, and I think it is due to the people I'm surrounded by. Although Nepal is far from home, I have easily formed a second home here.
What's the most important thing you've learned?
The most important thing I've learned in Nepal is to be open to understanding perspectives and cultures besides your own. This does not mean comparing one culture to another, but rather, acknowledging each culture as it's own, and appreciating it for that. And…The Nepal portion of my work has come to an end, and I am heading to Cambodia for the next part of my volunteer work. I will be there until August 20th, working at an NGO.
Daniel Lesko ’17is a chemistry major, who, thanks to a gift from the Parents Fund '17, is interning this summer at Joint Institute for Lab Astrophysics, University of Colorado, Boulder, Quantum Physics Division.
