Students recall and plan summer science internships

A six-hour operation at Stanford University takes place to remove a cancer patient’s thyroid gland. Junior Nicole Shadman stands in the hospital room clad in a scrubs uniform. She observes the scene with bated breath. She knows that a thyroid is normally about the size of a baseball, but as the surgeon scrapes out the cancerous tissue, the segment appears as large as an eggplant.

Part way through the process, the surgeon unintentionally cuts into the jugular vein, the primary vein in the neck. Mayhem breaks loose as blood splatters everywhere, a grotesque version of a medical drama.

The situation was rare, but as an intern last summer, Shadman had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to watch such a surgery.

Her internship experiences with Stanford University’s otolaryngology department—the ear, nose and throat division—in Lucile-Packard Children’s Hospital were unique. Shadman’s adventures started off with an application to Career Explorations, a program that helps students find internships.

“I was really lucky because the head of Career Explorations knows people at Stanford,” Shadman said. “Otherwise I probably wouldn’t have gotten the internship.”

She faced a rigorous work schedule from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday to Friday, for six weeks. Her days consisted of following different pediatricians and observing them diagnose patients in clinics. She also oversaw surgeries and spent a few days in the lab, where she studied the inner ear.

“I didn’t really have a job,” Shadman said. “It was more of an observing thing for if I wanted to go into pediatrics [or just] become a doctor. I think I do now. It definitely opened my eyes.”

Outside the Stanford realm

Many students spend summers at Stanford labs and clinics, but science internships are not limited to this one university. Senior Daryl Chang spent his last summer with the Garcia Material Research Science and Engineering Center (Garcia MRSEC) at Stony Brook University in New York. He researched the proficiency of specific scaffolds for the growth and development of stem cells into bone cells. Such research can aid bone fractures in the future.

“It was a fun experience, and I learned a lot about how stem cells grow and differentiate, in addition to finding out how science research works at universities,” Chang said.

Chang used his research to create and submit a project for the Siemens Competition in Math, Science and Technology. He and his partner worked into the summer and through the end of September. They qualified for the New York regional finals.

As a common feeder program into Siemens, Garcia MRSEC can be a useful tool to acquire lab experience and materials for science projects.

“I would recommend it to anyone who has a passion for science and research,” Chang said.

Twice the fun

Students who are searching for a middle ground between the Stanford and non-Stanford realms of internships—and are savvy enough—may find that two different internships suffice. Sophomore Parth Shah plans to pull off the feat as he takes on two science internships this summer.

In one internship at San Jose State University, he will assist a professor who teaches mechatronics, a subject that combines materials, mechanical, industrial, computer, chemical and electronic engineering. Some tasks will include testing in labs and cleaning up aspects left behind from the previous school year. If time permits, Shah may also create new hardware for the professor’s course.

Shah’s second internship will take place at Stanford’s neurology department. Here, he will help a doctor who treats spinal metastases. Duties will include gathering and processing the doctor’s data so that the latter can send it to coworkers.

Shah’s summer will consist of alternating between the the two internships.
He was able to acquire a flexible schedule by directly emailing professors for summer opportunities.

“These two opportunities seemed to interest me the most, so when it came time to choose, I decided to pursue both of them,” Shah explained.

The omnipresence of science internships

Sophomore Angela Kempf-Luu applied for her first summer internship this year. She submitted the application to Johnson and Johnson’s youth education and career exposure program, Bridge to Employment. The program offers various six-week paid internships where students can try different jobs.

Kempf-Luu submitted her top choice of internship for research at Stanford. She chose the internship to gain familiarity with earning money while working in medicine.

“I wanted to get first-hand experience in the medical field so I could have some inspiration,” Kempf-Luu said. “When I get to medical school, if I’m like, ‘this is really hard,’ I can think back to my internship and think about what experiences I had from it.”

But this will not be Kempf-Luu’s first time working with Stanford. Last summer, she took on a similar application process to volunteer at the university. Volunteering jobs include delivering products, working at the gift shop, transferring patients around the hospital and more.

Kempf-Luu has been fortunate enough to have such a volunteering opportunity at a Stanford clinic, where she fills out paperwork. She has been volunteering at the clinic since last summer. She fills out patients’ medical record numbers and organizes their files. This volunteering has given her invaluable experience as she awaits her summer internship.

Kempf-Luu emphasizes that students must have the correct frame of mind when searching for internships.

“People should be applying because they want to learn something new,” she said. “If you want to intern at a specific site, then frequently check to see if the site has opened up a new internship. You should know what you want, but be open-minded to new ideas.”

Tricks of the trade

Why do so many students chase after science internships? Guidance counselor Christy Cali attributes it to the idea of receiving “first-hand knowledge.”

“It’s getting away from the lecture, reading and test kinds of format to actually seeing day-to-day work and how you view science and apply it,” Cali said.

Cali finds many students and parents asking her about internships. She suggests that students visit the College and Career Center or ask their science teachers for internship openings they know of.

She agrees that such internships add color to college applications.

“It’s showing that you really have an interest in a particular area and a passion for it,” Cali said. “Anytime that you do a job that shows responsibility, that you’re dependable, that you can work with adults. Those are things that will help you get into college.”

As summer creeps closer, science internships swim in the minds of many students, and while it may often seem difficult to obtain one, the actual process can be quite simple.

“A lot of people think that you can’t get an internship,” Shadman said, “but honestly, if you just go on [a university’s] website and email 15 professors, one of them is bound to get back to you and let you shadow [him or her]. I definitely recommend internships to people who are looking into a specific job. It’s a really good experience.”