Something that I had always wanted to do was conduct research of my own. When I got to Longwood, I was worried that I did not have the right skills to do this. After my freshman year, I decided to ask my favorite professor if he had any room in his lab. He works with zebrafish developmental and environmental ecology and I thought it was the perfect combination of things I was interested in. He agreed and it has been a great experience! I have completed several semesters of research for credit, as well as started a senior thesis in this same lab. I have learned how to take care of the fish, use proper lab techniques and many procedures that allow us to study zebrafish genes and development. It has been a great experience and I have kept a record of what I have accomplished through summaries at the end of each semester. I went back and looked at the very first one and compared it to the most recent. Here is a copy of the first one. It was so fun to see how much more confident I have become in not only writing but discussing such cool topics in depth. And here is a copy of the most recent one. I am responsible for taking care of the fish multiple days a week, and I am trusted with cleaning and even running some of the procedures on my own now. I am so proud of how far I have come because before I was too nervous to even ask about research, and now I am pursuing a project of my own! Longwood has been a great place for me to explore the world of biology and research and I would not change this experience for a thing.
I think that this experience really highlights my ability to perform in a professional setting because I have proved that I am dedicated and responsible enough to continue working in the same lab since sophomore year. I look forward to completing my senior thesis!