Internship Coming to an End
As the internship comes to an end, my day-to-day work has shifted from data collection to communicating with a statistician, working on my presentation, and writing a manuscript for my project. The last few weeks have been crazy. Lots of communicating back and forth with a statistician, and my PI and RA, making sure the correct statistical tests are being run and I understand what the data means, working hard to create and finalize my presentation and manuscript, shadowing, and between it all, enjoying the last laughs with the other interns who have become my friends. With the craziness of the last few weeks, I have been very thankful for my experience at Cornell because working on the short schedule of the block plan has prepared me for all the work I’ve had to accomplish before the internship ends, and it’s made me feel confident in my ability to get it all done.
We had a final banquet on the last Wednesday of the internship, where all of the interns were able to present on their projects to family, friends, research assistants, and principal investigators. It was a little scary but also an amazing experience. It was for sure the most educated crowd I have ever presented to, with all the orthopedic surgeons being there. I’m so proud of how all the other interns and I did presenting and answering questions from the crowd.
Afternoon & Weekend Adventures
It is becoming more and more obvious that summer is quickly coming to an end, and with it my opportunity to be in the mountains. Because of this, I’ve been trying to make the most of every day and get to the mountains as much as possible. I trail ran a 14er (mountain that is over 14,000ft of elevation), Mt. Bierstadt with one of the interns Sean, which was on my bucket list for the summer. Then the following weekend, I hiked that same mountain with some of my Cornell friends, hiking a 14er was on their bucket list! Between the two trips up this mountain, I saw so much cool wildlife, including marmots, mountain goats, moose, and even some rams!
Zoe and I also went to a Caamp concert and I’ve been spending time with the interns outside of work. We’ve gotten pretty close over this summer, and I am so thankful that I was able to meet them through this opportunity. Though I am excited to get back to Iowa, Cornell, and my college friends, it’s sad to think I’ll be leaving this beautiful place. I thankfully have one last mountain adventure to end the summer. Two of my high school friends are flying to Denver the day after the internship ends, and we’re going on a three-day backpacking trip in the Indian Peaks Wilderness!
Reflecting on this Amazing Experience
As I reflect on this experience and this summer, I have an overwhelming sense of pride and thankfulness. Pride for all that I’ve accomplished and how I’ve grown as a scientist and a person, and thankful for this opportunity, the people I’ve met, and all the help and guidance I’ve had along the way.
I’ve learned so much this summer, but these are the two things that have stuck out to me the most. The first is that everyone gets to places in a different way. From talking to different medical professionals and hearing people speak in lectures, I’ve noticed that everyone has taken a different path to get to where they are, and that it’s okay to not take the conventional route. One doctor who spoke to us gave us a piece of advice that has stuck with me. He said that school will always be here, and that it’s important to take chances and enjoy the experiences of the things that we’re passionate about. For me, as I think about the path ahead of me, going to med school, residency, and fellowship, it’s encouraged me to say yes to opportunities that come my way, even if it isn’t following the timeline exactly. The other big thing that has stuck with me is that the people make the place. I remember feeling this same thing when I was doing lab research last summer. I am so beyond thankful that I met all the other interns, RAs, and doctors at Children’s. They were what made my summer experience so amazing. I can’t wait to see where we all go, and I hope our paths will cross again.