University of Portland

Biology Research Intern

May - August 2021 • Portland, OR

What I liked

I loved being able to go out each morning and observe the behavior of the Purple Martins down at our lower campus. It was so refreshing to work out in the field with a great team of very capable people. We solved a lot of problems through collaboration and brainstorming, and allowed me to see the importance of working with a group of people with shared interests.

What I wish was different

Advice

For research positions and internships in general: pursue what you love. If there is an opportunity that you are interested in, reach out to people involved and make yourself known, even if it is a bit intimidating. You might be surprised how much you can learn from your new work experience!

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University of Portland Undergraduate Student Researcher

June - August 2018 • Portland, OR

What I liked

I really enjoyed how much creativity my research allowed me this summer. I was given a lot of freedom with how I would take my professor's idea and make it a concrete, tangible system. My goal was to design a hands-on system to help students visualize fluid flow. I ended up leaning towards a biomedical application and designing a simplified carotid artery. The idea is that students will be able to change the carotid bifurcation angle and visualize how different geometries affect fluid flow. I had a lot of fun.

What I wish was different

I wish I had drafted a timeline to stick to throughout my research. I think that had I done this, I would have been able to accomplish more and make my system more complex.

Advice

My advice to someone interested in doing research is to talk to your professors and let them know what you're interested in. If they don't have a project that is applicable to your interests, chances are they know someone who does.

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Numerical Methods Student Researcher

June 2018 • Portland, OR

What I liked

I liked the opportunity to express my creative design ideas in a useful manner.

What I wish was different

I wish I had more time to design more useful items for the numerical methods course.

Advice

This experience was a great one and I would recommend doing research to anyone who has even the slightest interest.

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Undergraduate Researcher

June 2018 • Portland, OR

What I liked

It was fun and fit my interests

What I wish was different

Nothing. It was exactly what I thought it would be.

Advice

Be actually invested in the research or else it will end up feeling just like another class you would normally take.

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Environmental research

June 2018 • Portland, OR

What I liked

I loved learning under an amazing environmental professor, here at the University of Portland. I learned valuable tools that I can apply to future jobs, research and graduate school. It was an incredible opportunity to get real research experience, especially in a topic like the morphology of tidal pools.

What I wish was different

Nothing.

Advice

Reach out to your professors early- they are amazing resources.

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Research Assistant

May - August 2018 • Portland, OR

What I liked

I loved going out into the field and analyzing three years worth of data to see trends that could potential help an ecosystem.

What I wish was different

Nothing.

Advice

DO RESEARCH!! It is fun and helps you figure out your strengths/weaknesses and you can cultivate strong relationships with your peers and advisors.

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Undergraduate Research Assistant

May 2018 • Portland, OR

What I liked

I enjoyed that I had a lot of say in the project. I got to make real decisions that impacted the direction that our research went in.

What I wish was different

I wish that I had documented the experience better, I didn't take good research notes. This is not helpful now that I am trying to write a paper about the research.

Advice

I would recommend having a background in the area of research and being ready to do a good amount of reading.

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Research Assistant

May 2018 • Portland, OR

What I liked

I liked how much of the project was up to me! I learned I could figure out more things than I thought I could.

What I wish was different

Advice

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Undergraduate Research Assistant

May - August 2018 • Portland, OR

What I liked

This job allowed me to gain experience in field and lab work as well as design my own project. I enjoyed gaining confidence in my skills as a scientist.