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Career Goals
Career Goals
My current career goal is to become a research scientist or analyst. I am still deciding on graduate school; it depends on whether my career truly requires it. My career goal is something I’ve been working toward since I became a health science major, as it aligns with my interests. This year at my internship, I've already been asking everyone about their majors and whether they've attended graduate school. From what I’ve gathered, it all depends, as everyone started somewhere differently in their career.
My internship experience has confirmed and enlightened my career goals, as I still want to pursue a career in disease research and data analysis. I've gathered many ways to be involved in disease research without needing a master's or doctorate; for example, roles such as Medical Laboratory Scientist, Biomedical Equipment Technician, and Medical Sciences Technician. These roles align with my interests, but I also understand that graduate school can further my opportunities. My decision-making skills and self-knowledge related to my career will give me an edge in achieving my goals.
During the summer, I plan to work at another internship site. I hope to be accepted into the Indiana Bioscience Institute Internship to learn about disease pathogenesis and explore various opportunities on LinkedIn. For my remaining time at IU Indianapolis, I plan to focus on completing my degree while working at an internship site again to gain more experience with laboratory techniques and gain new perspectives.
Internship Goals
Internship Goals
Learning Goal #1: Learning to Use Lab Tools and Techniques
Relevance: How does this goal fit into your career journey or prepare you for the future?
I plan to work in a laboratory or clinical setting in my future career. By becoming familiar with the tools and techniques used in a laboratory, I can get ahead of those with less experience.
Action Plan: What tasks, responsibilities, projects, or activities will you do to meet this goal?
1. I will take notes and ask my supervisor questions to deepen my understanding of the topic.
2. I will also watch training videos and review PowerPoints outside of my internship to practice independently and become more familiar with the material.
3. I will practice using samples and ask for guidance when needed or if I make a mistake.
Progress: I have become accustomed to using various laboratory tools, such as pipettes, and understanding the differences between them, as well as machines like centrifuges, and knowing when to use them.
Learning Goal #2: Improving Communication Skills
Relevance: How does this goal fit into your career journey or prepare you for the future?
In laboratory settings, many projects and assignments require collaboration with others. As someone who is more reserved when speaking, practicing my communication now will help me become more comfortable with group work in the future.
Action Plan: What tasks, responsibilities, projects, or activities will you do to meet this goal?
1. I will speak more loudly and clearly to ensure my voice is heard.
2. I will participate in discussions and ask questions about topics I do not understand.
3. I will also practice public speaking by presenting future projects to a practice audience.
Progress: I presented at a lab meeting, sharing data on angiogenesis markers. I was initially nervous, as it was my first time speaking in the lab meeting, but as I talked, I became more comfortable as the setting relaxed. I was even complimented on my work.
Learning Goal #3: Understanding Pulmonary Hypertension and cells
Relevance: How does this goal fit into your career journey or prepare you for the future?
As this research relates to biology, chemistry, and anatomy, I need to review the basics and understand the distinctions within these fields, as this is a professional, real-world setting.
Action Plan: What tasks, responsibilities, projects, or activities will you do to meet this goal?
1. I will connect my observations to my other classes to view these concepts from different perspectives.
2. I will compare my findings here with those from my previous internships to identify the
differences and evaluate accordingly.
3. I will solidify my understanding of the research by completing the final project and portfolio
with great attention to detail.
Progress: I now understand Pulmonary Hypertension and Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension and why this research is essential.
Learning
Learning
October: I am confident in my problem-solving and perseverance. From my previous laboratory experiences, I’ve been applying what I’ve learned, and it's working extremely well. An example of using these skills is when I was given a math problem I hadn’t covered yet, but was asked to find the best way to solve it. After looking at it for a while, I started to recognize symbols from my previous lab and used a method they used to solve it. Even though I didn’t solve it however they wanted, I got the answer right. From there, I was taught the correct way to solve this problem and gained new knowledge from this experience
March: I am more confident in my integration and application. Since fall, I've learned more about pulmonary arterial hypertension. For example, I've started working with endothelial cells and have made connections between the lessons I've learned in biology and anatomy, regarding their function and their relationship to the respiratory system. With this information, I tie it back to my classes when given case studies related to these topics, and I feel more confident when giving alternative treatment methods.
October: Skills I want to continue to work on more are teamwork and independence. I am still being trained by my supervisor and others in the lab, so I haven’t conducted an experiment on my own yet. That also goes for teamwork; the most I’ve worked on is assisting my supervisor or others in the lab with their projects, rather than a joint project everyone pitches in to. The specific actions I will take to grow these skills include paying attention to their instructions, taking notes, reviewing them at home, and practicing what I've learned to see that I understand the material.
March: The skill I want to continue working on is communication. Even after being on my site since September, I still find it challenging to ask for help, especially from those I don't usually work with, as I'm disrupting their work. And even though I've been told often that I won't be a bother, I find it hard to approach them. I also want to improve my presentation skills, as I get nervous when presenting my findings and stumble over my words. I plan to ease my way in by asking more minor things, working up the courage to ask for help, and practicing my words and pronunciation to say the right thing.
My internship has helped me with my coursework and major. I now have a better grasp of past courses. Having more hands-on time in the lab, using Excel, and seeing biological samples has given me more time to immerse myself in these concepts and understand them better and their real-world uses.
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