Skills Gained

The research we performed under Dr. Jacobsen has proven to be a great opportunity for us to grow in both our capabilities in research-related techniques and our understanding of the relationships and interactions we have studied. Additionally, we have developed numerous career readiness skills (NACE competencies) that will aid us in continuing research and in our future careers. Competencies we developed during this project include...

•  Communication - While running multiple day-long projects, keeping all research group members in the loop regarding completed procedures and new developments is crucial for ensuring accurate and timely results are obtained. In order to do this, we maintained constant communication with each other and Dr. Jacobsen through the usage of a shared Google Doc we used to note completed tasks and any relevant information.

•  Critical Thinking - While most of the time in the lab is spent generating results through the setup and completion of experiments, being able to interpret and apply said results is what we as researchers ultimately aim for. Critical thinking is an aspect vital for this interpretation and subsequent application. During our research, we greatly developed our critical thinking skills by taking our raw data and observations and using them to generate results we are able to apply to relevant field data and related research projects.

•  Teamwork - Working with a team is imperative in nearly every research project, and our experience at The Conservatory was no different. As we required multiple experiments to generate data, cooperation with each other allowed us to fully observe and maintain experiments we may not have been able to perform alone. Teamwork also allowed us, as college students with busy schedules, to efficiently divide our time and make sure someone was always present when required in the lab.