WYWLA senior, Asia Fields, recently completed a very competitive and intensive summer internship at North Carolina State University.  Here is her story:

Tell us about your internship this summer.  

This past summer, I was accepted into the ACS Chemical Society Project SEED Program. I was stationed at North Carolina State University, Wilson College of Textiles in The Sustainable Dye Chemistry Laboratory under the direct supervision of Dr. Tova Williams and Muhammad Jawad UI Rehman.

Digital textile printing is the process of printing colorants onto textiles or garments through inkjet technology. I was tasked with developing an optimized ink formulation for inkjet printing using alizarin dye and testing it on polyester fabric. 

In modernized industries, all printers have certain qualifications to which their ink must adhere to print on their textiles. However, in every lab, there are different requirements you must meet depending on the experiment you are trying to conduct. This summer, I created a colorant for digital printing using a natural bio-based dye called alizarin. With this experiment, various tests need to be conducted to create the ink, and even more so, considering alizarin had never been used in the digital textile printing market before; making my work a pre-trial/first attempt.

Along with the ink development, my program had different sets of responsibilities that I, along with my cohort were tasked with. Some include:

• Powerpoint presentation regarding my work in the lab (creating the ink)

• Poster presentation

• Trifold presentation

• Annual abstract

• Undergraduate Symposium Poster presentation 

• Research paper

• Registrations for science competitions (takes place after internship)

  • → There are a total of 7 competitions (some in and out of state) where those within the program present their work to judges and compete for cash prizes and titles. 

What did a typical day look like at your internship?

My day typically started at 9:00 am. I left the house no later than 8:20 am considering the NC State continental campus is around a 30-minute drive. During orientation, my mentor (Jawad) and I had previously discussed that we would meet in the lab at 9 am at a minimum of 3 days a week. - On Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, I had what’s called Q&A sessions, where I along with the Project SEED Student at NC State campus, would meet with our advisor and rehearse our Powerpoint presentation that we worked on throughout the 8-week program from 5 pm to 7:30 pm. - While knowing this information, I worked out a schedule with my mentor so that I had two days off (Wednesday and Friday) during my week. 

During the first couple weeks in the lab, I spent a lot of time researching different aspects of my project. Whether that be researching different solvents to incorporate into my ink samples, looking up popular dispersing agents to add to the ink to help increase dispersion, investigating the types of solvents and acids we had in the lab, etc. Once I built my foundation, it was only then, that I started doing physical, hands-on experiments and documenting my results in my research notebook. My day would then end at around 2 pm and I would have the rest of the day off (which was usually spent working on my other assignments for the program). 

How did you land your internship?

 Mr. Reed, WYWLA's Career Development Coordinator, approached me in the library at St. Augustine's University last year about a possible internship opportunity. He explained to me that it was in the STEM field, which he knew I was interested in pursuing based on previous discussions. There was a lot of stress and turmoil leading up to my decision to apply to this program; many included my plans over the summer, due to the intensity of the program;  it is strongly recommended that you participate in no other extracurricular activities. This included sports, and family plans, the program even discouraged working. (Stated in the email at orientation). Mr. Reed then explained to me the different requirements to apply for the program. (Teacher recommendation letters, supplemental essays, resume, transcript, etc.) 

However, after everything, out of over 5,000 applicants that year, only 5 students were selected for the final acceptance (there were different rounds of applications depending on if you continued to advance), which expresses how competitive the program is. 

Now that you’ve ended your internship, what did you get out of it?

  After my internship, I gained significant exposure and experience in a scientific laboratory. It opened my eyes to various opportunities in the science field that I had not previously considered.      Throughout the program, not only did I increase my knowledge of textiles along with their chemical aspects, but I was also allowed to create good connections with my mentor and other lab members. Creating those relationships will open more doors for me when it comes time to make a name for myself in the STEM field. 

Has doing the internship impact your future career plans/goals?  How?

After completing this internship, I developed a deeper love for chemistry- so much so that I have even considered changing my major when I go into college. I originally planned to major in biology, however learning the different aspects of chemistry from my summer program, has sparked my interest in possibly pursuing a career in the chemistry field.

I found it both useful and motivating to be able to participate in this internship program. It gave me great insight into what it is like to work in environments that I had not previously considered. I would not necessarily say I have a strong desire to become a scientific researcher, however, it does open doors in terms of reconsidering my career path.