Though Longwood is a university and not the same as a professional work setting, it is still a professional setting. I tend to act more informally in classes, but I do know when it’s time to be more formal and work as a professional. The most professional setting at Longwood has to be the research showcase that happens every semester. I’ve presented at the showcase as well as been an audience member for other presentations, and I believe that I am able to perform competently in a professional setting.

Research internship: While at Longwood, I worked on a research internship with Dr. Dale Beach that I took very seriously. There were a few of us working on this research, and I made sure to always be on time to our meetings and participate. I gave ideas for how to perform and move forward with our research as well as filled out paperwork and documentation appropriately. We also presented our research at the research showcase. This was not my first time presenting, but I took it very seriously. We had a poster with some of our information and sample data that we analyzed as our actual results were delayed. I had very nice conversations with people in attendance about the research and think overall that the internship went well. I received feedback that I acted professionally and feel confident with the work I did.

Modern genetics: One of the largest projects and presentations I did throughout my time at Longwood was in my modern genetics class. We worked all semester on our research and used our final exam period to present. These were individual half hour presentation that were just in our classroom, but were still professional representations of our work. I made sure to dress appropriately and invite others to listen to my own and my classmates’ research. While presenting, I tried to initiate appropriate discussion with the audience to keep them engaged as well as make sure they were following appropriately. I made sure to thank the audience and answer any questions before finishing my presentation. While others were presenting, I made sure to participate and ask questions appropriately to support the hard work that they put into their projects. Though this was not at the research showcase, it was one of the most professional presentations I’ve done at Longwood and definitely the most professional on I did alone. I think it went incredibly well and I was really proud of the work I did for it.

Link to Slides: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1aJ29nqyepYHggSLIbYOfkM_bzSwWX66W7P3PcyJ7Ix4/edit?usp=sharing

Incite: One of the most unique professional experiences I’ve had at Longwood is when I wrote a paper for submission to our student research journal, Incite. I originally wrote the paper I submitted as a class research paper. However, my professor mentioned that it would be a good candidate for Incite and offered to help me edit it to submit. Working one-on-one with my professor to edit my paper is something I hadn’t done before, but I very much enjoyed. He gave me notes and suggestions but also valued my own opinions about my paper and left what went into the final draft up to me. I think we were able to make my paper much better than the original draft and I submitted it to Incite. I then received formal communication and more edits from other professors and Longwood staff to finalize it for submission. This was the first time I ever wrote professionally and I think it went well. My paper is currently in press with Incite and will be published soon.