The day I was offered this internship was one of the most exciting days of my life which sounds silly I know, but these types of opportunities are rare and I was thrilled to have been accepted. Its not everyday that programs like COSEE are offered, let alone to community college students, so when you find an opportunity like this you just have to go for it. I have met many students and interns here at the Oregon Institute of Marine Biology that are not sure if marine biology or ocean science is the direction they want to go in life, but they are out here because they want to get their feet wet (literally) and see how it is to be in the field actually collecting data and conducting research.
It has been so much fun and I am lucky enough to be able to stay an additional month as a student employee through the University of Oregon for the Shanks Lab, covering Marley's work while she is away. I would have never thought that this internship would have opened doors so quickly for me, but it did and my gratitude is beyond comprehension.
My best advice to the current community college students out there is to keep your undergraduate degree broad and explore all of the possibilities that an overall science degree has to offer. Try something out of your comfort zone and apply for programs like COSEE. Why not find out what you like and what you don't like? It has been an experience I will never forget and it is hard to communicate how awe-inspiring my time here has been. I have made many new friends from all over North America, gained lab and field experience, met renowned researchers and had a blast while doing it. It is perfectly okay to be nervous coming into something like this, but you only live once and you have to take advantage of every opportunity available to you.
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| Left to Right: Jessie, Corey, Sol, Robbie, Sam, Payton, Hannah and myself! |
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| Oregon Institute of Marine Biology Summer 2013 |
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