A couple of weeks ago, we were delighted to host our In2research launch event to welcome the programme’s 2024/5 cohort to an incredible year ahead. One of our talented alumni, Aaliyah Camara, shared her reflections on her In2research experience, her highlights and how it has shaped her next steps. Here is her speech in full:
Finding In2research: Why I took part
I found In2research in the summer between my first and second year at uni. I liked the sound of all the aspects of the programme so I immediately applied. Neither of my parents went to university, so there was a big emphasis on education when I was younger. Going to university was always something I planned to do, but no one ever spoke to me about studying past undergraduate level.
When I realised I wanted to do something related to biology, becoming a researcher crossed my mind, but I didn’t know how to get from point A of doing an undergrad degree to point B of having a career as a researcher. This was made harder by the fact that I struggled getting any sort of experience — I didn’t have any connections in the field, and I lacked the confidence to approach researchers.
At the time of applying for In2research, I had only ever completed practicals which took place once a week. I had never actually set foot into a real lab, but the idea of a career in research still intrigued me and my goal was to find out if it was right for me.
Workshops and mentoring
An aspect of the programme that really helped me understand postgraduate studies and the world of academia were the workshops. I found these very helpful because, as silly as it may sound, I really didn’t know anything about a PhD, other than you complete original research. I wasn’t aware of how to fund it, how to find and approach potential supervisors, and I didn’t know what was required in a PhD application, but this was all covered in great detail in the workshops.
These workshops were complemented well by the mentoring sessions. My mentor is an associate professor at UCL, and that was my first time having a conversation with a researcher. When I first met her, she showed me around her lab, and introduced me to her team. I learnt about what she researches, and I got to ask her questions about how she got to where she is today.
I met with her after each In2research workshop, where I could ask her more specific questions on what was covered. So for example, after a session on applications, I realised that my CV didn’t fit the specifications of an academic CV, so my mentor helped me improve it and advised on specific language that I could use to really highlight my skills. Even though I have finished the programme, I am still in contact with my mentor, and she is always willing to help me with the next steps in my career.
The placement
If I had to choose, I would say the highlight of the programme was my summer placement. I was on the STEM stream of the programme, completing a neuroscience placement with the Queen Square Institute of Neurology and UK Dementia Research Institute at UCL. I was working in the lab of Professor Adrian Isaacs, and I was being supervised by a post doc and a senior research technician.
The lab researches two neurodegenerative diseases — frontotemporal dementia, also known was FTD, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as ALS. They specifically focus on the most common genetic cause of both diseases which is a mutation in a gene called C9orf72. To study this disease, they often use mouse models, and when developing them, they need see (1) the behavioural abnormalities they associate with the disease, and (2) the pathological features, which includes neuronal loss in the brain. The conundrum was that they were seeing the behavioural abnormalities, but they weren’t seeing neurodegeneration when using a marker that tags all the neurons in the brain.
My project involved looking at new markers to see if only a subpopulation of neurons known to be vulnerable early in the disease are dying in the brains of the mice. And from my results, we didn’t find anything significant, but I still learnt a lot.
I had the chance to practice a range of lab skills, such as immunostaining, Western blot, MSD assay, microscopy, and data analysis. I also learnt skills not directly related to my project, such as how to cut mice brains on a cryostat.
My highlights
Something that was great about the placement is that you are treated as a team member. I had the chance to attend weekly lab meetings, and present my findings from the summer at one of these meetings. I also went to weekly work in progress seminars where researchers from other labs talk about what they are working on. On quieter days, I asked to shadow different members of the lab to learn about what they were specifically working on. It also gave me a chance to ask questions about how they got into research. Or on other days, I would ask if I could practice a new technique, or repeat experiments to become more comfortable performing them myself.
On my first day of the placement, I was incredibly nervous. I didn’t know if it was going to be very demanding and if I could keep up, or if I was going to get along with the team, or how anything was going to work logistically, but I was incredibly lucky to learn from researchers who were very patient and encouraging. They answered all my questions and the whole team were just the loveliest bunch of people. I had a lot of fun with them beyond lab work, and that taught me the importance of work-life balance.
Over the summer, I really learnt what the day-to-day is like for a researcher and it confirmed that this is something I’d be happy to pursue. Because I had a chance to speak to many researchers, I learnt that there are so many routes into research.
Before, I thought you had to do a masters to be able to go onto a PhD, but I spoke to people who went straight onto PhDs from undergraduate, those who became a research assistant first or who got experience in industry first.
Research output and celebration event
As you may already know, during the In2research placement, you work towards generating a research output. This is basically a summary of your summer project, and when you present this to an audience, usually in the form of a poster or presentation.
In science, it is a convention to create a research output in the form of a scientific poster and I received a lot of guidance from my supervisors, not only on how to create it, but how to present it well. Then this all culminates in a celebration event. This was my first time presenting a poster and talking about research in front of a range of different people, from professional researchers to participants, in and out of the field of neuroscience. This was a great opportunity to not only showcase my work, but learn about the amazing research completed by other participants.
The support you receive during the programme doesn’t just stop at the end of the year, because you will go on to join the alumni community, which I am also now a part of. There are chances to network with past participants and other researchers at conferences or coffee socials, and we are also informed about great opportunities including those related to PhDs. In the future, I am looking forwards to engaging more with these opportunities.
Next steps
Over the duration of the programme, I grew a lot in confidence and skills. I am currently completing my undergraduate project in a microbiology lab. Even though it’s very different to neuroscience, my In2research summer placement prepared me well, and now I feel more comfortable in a lab environment. I am also currently applying to masters programmes, which advice from the workshops has helped me with.
Words of wisdom
The year ahead for you guys is really exciting. And if I had to give some advice, I would say be a sponge! Whether you leave the programme knowing that research is the one for you, or you decide to take a completely different route, take in everything around you.
But with that being said, also:
- Seek out new opportunities and be proactive
- Don’t be afraid to ask questions or make mistakes
- Be willing to say yes and try new things
- Make notes on the things you are learning
- Introduce yourself to people, including other participants.
It’s great to be surrounded by people who are as passionate about research as you, and I’m very lucky to have made great connections through In2research over the past year. And watch and listen intently to those around you. I went from not knowing anyone in science to learning from people that I aspire to be like.
You can’t be what you can’t see
It was only towards the end of the programme that I heard a great saying: that you can’t be what you can’t see. Before In2research, I didn’t know what it my life could look like, because I didn’t fully know what it meant to be a researcher. But now, having met researchers and having learnt about a life in research, there’s so much more clarity for me in what I want to do, and who I want to become. I hope that I’ve been able to give you a bit of insight into the programme, and I wish you all well over the next year. Thank you.