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Stage 3 - External Summer Research Internships

Stage 3 External Summer Research Opportunities

A number of our Stage 4 students, who completed Summer research internships at the end of their third year, were invited to present at an information session in October 2022 for all current Stage 3 students, organised by Associate Prof Niamh O'Sullivan.

Mateusz Checinski, (pictured first left), Stage 4 Biochemistry, spent his Summer in a lab at Institut Pasteur in Paris as part of the Amgen Scholars programme and tells us about his experiences.

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"I was part of the Amgen Scholars programme and spent my Summer in a lab at Institut Pasteur in Paris. There, I worked with Julia Torné, a post-doc from Barcelona, on the NK cell memory response to Streptococcus pneumoniae. We isolated and purified NK cells from infected and control mice and analysed them using flow cytometry. In the end, we found a potential receptor which is involved in mediating memory to the specific bacteria.

It was difficult to adapt at first and learn how to do more challenging experiments, especially with shaking hands! My supervisor and other colleagues were super helpful and friendly, and I felt very comfortable after a week. 

Apart from the time spent in the lab, the other 16 interns and I took every opportunity to explore Paris. We had social events organised by the programme like dancing at Caveau de la Huchette, a basement jazz club featured in the famous ‘La la Land’ movie, or Giverny where Monet painted his famous water lilies. We were extremely lucky to be in Paris for the Quatorze Juillet or Bastille Day when we could watch fireworks from the Eiffel Tower. We also took the Bateaux Mouches on the Seine and went to see the famous Tour de France. We became super close with the other interns, had dinner together as we all lived in the same building. 

The programme ended with a symposium at the University of Cambridge where all interns from all participating institutions could meet and present their work on a poster. We were worried at first when we heard we need to prepare a poster to show our projects but the informal presentations in Paris with champagne and macarons showed us the worry was unnecessary! It was an incredible experience which I would recommend to everyone. I can’t imagine a better way to spend the past Summer and I will definitely see the other interns very soon!"            

Athaliah Fubara (pictured below, front right), Stage 4 Genetics, took part in a Summer research project at ETH Zürich in Switzerland, also as part of the Amgen Scholars Programme. 

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"Over the summer, I had the privilege of engaging in a research project at ETH Zürich in Switzerland as part of the Amgen Scholars Program. 

I was based in the lab of neuro-epigenetics, which aims to understand how life experiences, like trauma and early stress, shape the epigenome. My lab-based project was focused on investigating a CRISPR-based epigenome editing technique, and my bioinformatics project analysed the tissue specific binding of the transcription factor CTCF. During the two months, I lived with 10 amazing students in a student accommodation that was close to the ETH campuses. On the weekdays we would work on our various projects, and on the weekends we visited the most beautiful places in Switzerland and toured neighbouring countries. We ended the program by flying to the UK for a symposium at the University of Cambridge. There I presented my research, received mentoring and advice from professionals in industry and academia, and engaged in career workshops. We later gathered in London for a small closing celebration and to say our final goodbyes. Overall, the experience has helped me to appreciate interdisciplinary research and has given me the opportunity to make life-long friendships with students from all over. Without a doubt, it was the best summer I have ever had and I would highly recommend summer internships to anyone!"

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For any Internship queries, including the 6-months credit bearing research internship project please contact the College of Science internship managers in the first instance - contact details and more information on link here

See links below for further details on Summer Research Internships options:

Contact the UCD School of Biomolecular and Biomedical Science

H1.38 O’Brien Centre for Science, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland.
T: +353 1 716 2130 | E: undergrad.sbbs@ucd.ie | Location Map(opens in a new window)