LHSI Intern: research assistant, understanding the immune pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes

Program Summary:  

This internship is offered as a part of the Life-Health Sciences Internship Program (LHSI). This program connects 125 IUI undergraduates per year with internships on campus with faculty and staff in a variety of health and science related campus areas/programs. All LHSI internships start in August 2025 and end in May 2026 and are paid $13/hour for up to 10 hours per week. Work-study is accepted but not required.

Supervisor: Dr. Jamie Felton

Department/Office: Medicine; Pediatrics

Overview of the internship site: The Felton Lab is a translational lab dedicated to understanding the immune pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes, with a goal of developing effective prevention and intervention therapies. We use both animal models and human samples to understand how autoimmunity in type 1 diabetes develops. We focus on the development of B lymphocytes during disease progression, the interactions between the islet microenvironment and immune cell function, and identification of early biomarkers of disease risk.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities: This position will include primarily working at the bench in the lab with some assistance in data analysis.

Work Environment and Dress Code: The work is performed primarily in a lab setting with dress code of must wear close-toed shoes

Hours per week: flexible based on student needs (10 maximum), scheduling is flexible within regular work hours

Project-specific qualifications: A willingness to work with animal models (mice) and attention to detail are both extremely important.

By the end of the LHSI program, you will:

·        Carefully consider, explore, and articulate your career goals, including an analysis of how you arrived at that path and what steps you need to take next. (Community Contributor, Communicator)

·        Understand your role and strengths on a professional team and analyze who you would like to become as a professional. (Communicator)

·        Gain and strengthen skills relevant to next steps after graduation, such as communication, collaboration, teamwork, analysis/synthesis/evaluation, independence, confronting/challenging failure, problem-solving and perseverance, and constructive criticism. (Problem Solver, Communicator)

·        Convey ideas and knowledge effectively through an ePortfolio and presentation of your internship work. (Problem Solver, Communicator)

·        Set and meet your own additional learning goals identified with your supervisor.

LHSI Qualifications  

·        must be graduating May 2027 or after (usually a current freshman or sophomore in Spring 2025) 

·        full-time IUI undergraduate 

·        minimum overall GPA of 2.0 

·        All majors welcome

To apply:

LHSI accepts at least 125 interns per year. Complete the application for LHSI at lhsi.indianapolis.iu.edu and select between 2-4 internship sites on that application. All available sites are listed in Handshake and will start with the position title “LHSI Intern.”