The reason I chose to work at this lab is because it focuses on a field in psychology that I am interested in. When I think about my future career, I want to be involved in things that are similar to the research we are doing at the lab. I would like to work with younger pre-teens and adolescents. I also want to be working on research that will directly improve the life of someone who's life is affected by a developmental disorders. People who are diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder and their caregivers have many challenges to face in their daily lives. What I can do at the moment is help research ways to make their experience within general psych units easier. I hope to make connections from this lab position to ensure that I am still involved in this kind of work in my future career path.

As an intern in the lab, I always felt like there was so much more for me to learn at any given time. Throughout the entire year, from the beginning of the internship even until now, I have been learning new things everyday from this lab. That has kind of played into my role as a teammate in the lab. I am always given tasks that will help me progress in my professional growth. I always felt comfortable making mistakes and asking for help because my team would always have my back and guide me in the right direction. As the semester progressed and I acquired more knowledge about the site and the work we are doing, I became a little more independent. An example of this is when it came to conducting interviews. During August-October, I watched my lab-mates conduct interviews and took notes. Then in December, I conducted my first interview with another research assistance assisting me. Eventually after a few proctored interviews, I conducted my own interview in the beginning of the year. I also attended the IUURC and presented alongside my lab mate about our project and it made me feel much more independent and knowledgable about the study.

I believe many of the skills I am using at my internship, I have developed through other work and volunteer experiences. My senior year of high school I worked at a salad restaurant as an evening shift supervisor. I was responsible for all employees during the evening shift. My main task was to ensure we had a smooth closing process at the end of the shift. I worked with staff to coordinate who does what while I counted the money in the drawer and made sure we had the right amount. This job taught me to take on more responsibility and think independently. It also taught me how to collaborate with coworkers and be a good team leader for them. I have also been volunteering on campus since last year at Paw's Pantry as well as the campus kitchen. At the pantry, I am responsible for checking out students and faculty on campus who wanted to get food for the week. This role taught me how to communicate with people, and provide them with any help they may need. At the campus kitchen, I was able to help distribute easy to prepare, healthy, sustainable meal kits to students and staff. I helped check people out and provided them with their meal kits as well as any information they needed to prepare it. This role taught me to be coordinated and it also taught me how to work in a timely manner. As I have worked at the lab, I have definitely worked on my previous skills and developed new ones. One skill I believe I have worked on is my communication skill. Working in a professional setting taught me how to communicate appropriately with advisors and other research assistance. I have also developed the skill of consistency. I like to stay on top of things and get them done as they come to me rather than let it all pile on. I have tried my best to stay consistent in my work and ensure that it is quality work.