A "Typical" Day

As I'm nearing the end of the program, it's amazing to think back to the beginning and all that I've accomplished this summer. As I mentioned in my first post, after our week-long orientation, we dove right into lab work. I came into my lab just as Eric, my daily mentor, was beginning to implement the experiment that I'm presenting in a week (eek!).

My lab experience from this summer was very different from most of my friends', since it's a cognitive neuroscience lab. We don't have a single test tube or Bunsen burner in sight (though we do have a syringe for the electrode gel used during EEG experiments). Nor do we have a dress code requiring closed toed shoes or pants; we just need to look nice for when subjects come in to do the experiments. During orientation, our instructors stressed the importance of keeping a lab notebook, but since we're not doing complicated procedures where putting in too much of a chemical could mess up the results, I just have a regular spiral notebook to record anything I deem important or interesting, and issues that come up while experimenting (say, a participant falling asleep in the fMRI scanner--it has happened!) are recorded in binders, one for each study. Since we did an entire experiment in 8 or so weeks, with me working full-time, it's also worth noting that my experience is fairly different from that of a student researcher working part-time in a lab over several years.

For the most part, I worked standard hours, coming in a little after 9 and leaving around 5 or 5:30, with the majority of that time spent at a computer. Initially, I worked on programming the experiment, using a software program called E-Prime. It sets up the various screens of instructions and stimuli that a participant sees, and also takes care of recording their responses when they press keys.

After some revisions, I began running subjects on the experiment (this summer, I also tested participants on a couple other studies that the lab is conducting). As I wrote earlier, it was difficult having people sign up via the usual method, so I ended up working around 2 extra hours every night, testing people from my program. During that time, I also wrote scripts that sorted the data into the different categories we need, using a programming language called Python. It's a fairly easy language to pick up, but pretty frustrating when a tiny error messed the whole thing up!

And now, I'm working on analyzing the data and on my poster and paper, which are due in exactly one week. It'll be a lot of work, but very rewarding!

The beginning of the end

I have less than 2 weeks left in Atlanta, and I'm a little surprised at how quickly time has passed and how easily I've slipped into life here. I don't shiver quite as much in the frigidly air conditioned rooms and buses, and stepping out into the 90 degree-plus heat isn't too horrible anymore. I now know the Atlanta public transit system so much better than that of Boston or Philly (I live about 40 minutes outside the city), and though I complain about its wacky scheduling, it's treated me pretty well. And after my initial shock at seeing a "sunshower" (they've happened several times this summer), I'm just slightly amused to find myself squinting into the sun as raindrops fall on my head.

I've completed running all subjects (I have usable data from 17 people), and I've completed some analyses already in preparation for my poster. It's strange to think that in two weeks I won't be taking the 9:06 number 1 bus to my lab anymore, and that I won't see everyone at the lab once I wrap up the pilot experiment and my program.

My lab director, Dr. Duarte, usually spends her time in her office at the psychology building or in a small office in the building where the lab is (Georgia Tech has a psychology annex in a building--shared with Georgia State--where the MRI machine is kept). She'll pop in once in awhile to conference with lab members and for our biweekly lab meetings. I most closely work with the post-doc in the lab, Eric, who is also working on several other experiments at the same time, a couple of which I'm trained to run participants on. Michael is the grad student, and he also oversees several experiments. Then we have a lab manager, who worked as a research assistant before graduating from Georgia Tech this year, another recent grad who's working on some studies before leaving for grad school in a few weeks, as well as three undergraduate research assistants.

Hopefully tomorrow I'll get a chance to chat with my PI about what she does, so I'll be able to write more soon! I spent a fantastic day at Six Flags with some people from my program today, so I need to put some aloe on my slightly sunburned skin and do lots of reading in preparation for my poster draft, due Wednesday!

Looking to the future

This week, we had an excellent group of panelists come in to talk to us about grad school: Dr. Wilczynski, Director of the Neuroscience Institute at Georgia State; Dr. Ressler, who is both an MD and a PhD; Ms. Smith of Emory's admissions; Dr. Wheaton of Georgia Tech; and Ms. Fani, a grad student at Georgia State.

As promised, here are some points I found very useful from the last seminar (with the panelists), with additions from the seminar before, when BRAIN staff gave us presentations on grad school:

Applying to grad school is like applying for a job.
Several students in the program asked about the personal statement--what should be included, and how to make it stand out. All of the panelists agreed that an applicant could get away with mentioning a personal story of why he or she is interested in that field (for instance, that a family member is afflicted with a neurodegenerative disorder), but they see many such essays, and it should only take up a sentence or two at most. One panelist put it bluntly: "I don't really care that much about your motivation; I just want to know whether you can do the job." Indeed, graduate schools pay their students to attend, and in return, students work in the labs, contributing heavily to the research at their institution.

But it should definitely be better than a dead-end job you have just to pay the bills! Ms. Fani said that while she doesn't have quite as much to spend on hobbies or other interests, she's really excited about her research and all the hours she spends on work doesn't feel bad at all.

Also, it won't hurt you if your undergraduate research experiences aren't aligned with what you're applying for. The fact that you have research experience shows that you have a sense of what research is like, and that you may have knowledge of lab techniques and "soft skills" like teamwork and problem solving.

Finding the right fit
This came up again and again during our discussion. Ultimately, the panelists said, you need to find the place that suits your interests. A solid match between the type of work a university does and what you are passionate about is what will make your essay stand out, not fluffy attention-grabbers. To find the right place for you, talk to lots of people: professors who know your interests, principal investigators (PIs) whose work interests you, and everyone in your prospective lab, if you're invited to interview. In particular, try to speak to the graduate students in the lab you're looking to join when the PI isn't there. This way, you'll get a fuller understanding of the environment you could be spending much of your time in for the next few years.

Definitely get in touch with PIs, because they'll likely play a big role in your acceptance. Exactly how much will depend on the university, but you can get a hint by looking at the program descriptions: some may mention rotations through a few labs before students settle on one, meaning that an admissions committee or many faculty members will be reviewing applications. If students are immediately situated in a lab, then it's possible that an applicant's fate depends on the PI they want to work with.

Don't stress the GRE too much
A couple of the panelists said that there is a cutoff at their schools, but if an applicant is above that cutoff, the GRE score doesn't play a huge role in the ultimate decision. One recalled an applicant who barely made it to the interview weekend due to a GPA and GRE score that weren't amazing, but her ability to discuss science, obvious passion for the field, and charming personality made her a shoo-in.

MD/PhD programs
The ideal candidate for such a program should be competitive for both sides of the program, with a strong academic record, clinical experiences like shadowing, and serious research experience. At Emory, the MD/PhD program has students in medical school classes for the first two years, followed by two years of grad school classes, then two years back in med school.

After the panel discussion, I spoke to Dr. Ressler and asked him what factors I should consider when deciding if I want to take that route. He said that students should only really do the combined program if they're serious about pursuing research as a career path. But just going to medical school doesn't close off research in the future; after fellowships and other experiences, an MD can still solely be a researcher.

Dr. Ressler's advice only further swayed me toward pursuing just a medical degree...but of course, applications for med or grad school are still a few years off, and future experiences may change my mind!

Data collecting: halfway there!

Normally in Georgia Tech psychology labs, researchers recruit young adults through an online site called Experimetrix. Professors will require that students do a certain number of hours of participating in psych experiments, so students come in to fulfill that requirement. This summer, people in my building have noted that it's an especially slow summer, since there's low course enrollment and not that many professors are having students participate. And even when students do sign up, they're allowed to cancel last minute or not show up at all...and this has happened quite a few times to me already.

Luckily, my friends at the BRAIN program were interested in participating, especially as there's the added incentive of getting monetary compensation for helping me :) We're shooting for around 20 subjects for me to present my poster on, and today I just finished my 12th subject. Since everyone else in the program is also working full time, I've started to bring back one of the lab laptops with me to test people in the evenings, and tomorrow I'll be testing three more people. Upon hearing of my testing-filled weekend plans, the grad student in my lab commented that I'm already starting to live like a graduate student--he usually comes into the lab on weekends.

Speaking of graduate school, this past Wednesday, the program had a group of panelists come in to answer questions about applications for and life during grad school. I found it very informative, and I'll write about it very, very soon!