Macalester College

Conference Staff Member

June - August 2018 • Saint Paul, MN

What I liked

The people that I worked with were incredible. They were by far the greatest group of people I’ve ever worked with.

What I wish was different

I wish I could have worked longer.

Advice

I would say to not take your fellow workers for granted.

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Biology Research Intern

June 2017 • Saint Paul, MN

What I liked

I liked the opportunity to work on research that I think is important and interesting.

What I wish was different

Advice

Finding a positive research experience is all about talking to professors and getting to know more about their research, as well as showing your interest and diligence as you apply to work for them.

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Research Assistant

May - August 2018 • Saint Paul, MN

What I liked

It gave me a lot of experience in research, computer science (my major), and what a full time job is like.

What I wish was different

I wish I had worked with the intensity of the final week throughout the whole summer.

Advice

Ask lots of questions, professionals are there to teach you.

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Research Assistant

July - August 2018 • Saint Paul, MN

What I liked

I loved the opportunity to meet and network with professionals in my intended field of study.

What I wish was different

I wish we had more funding through Macalester to finance some of our goals.

Advice

Professors can be goldmines for guidance and connections beyond Macalester. Make the most of them while you still can!

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Chemical Research Assistant

May - August 2018 • Saint Paul, MN

What I liked

I enjoyed being able to work collaboratively in a lab and learn more about organic chemistry. I feel I was really able to gain valuable lab experience while learning both technical and soft skills.

What I wish was different

I think that it would have been nice to work on a more defined project that had a clear goal or set of objectives that could be completed during the summer.

Advice

While gaining technical skills and learning about how to work in an organic chemistry lab was valuable, working together with my peers both in and out of lab was equally beneficial, so be sure to make connections with the people that you are working with.

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Economic Research Assistant

June - August 2018 • Saint Paul, MN

What I liked

I really enjoyed having a flexible schedule and arranging it the way I thought it would make more sense to get to the results we wanted. I really liked teaching myself whatever I did not know about the software and programming skills that required to get the project done.

What I wish was different

I think I communicated somewhat poorly with the teacher I was doing research under, because I realized quite late something was not working. To that extent I think it would have been useful to keep him up to speed with absolutely all the details of my work, even the more basic ones.

Advice

Definitely make sure you are up to date with all the details of your research project. It's also very easy to get bogged down in the minutiae -- be careful to take the time every day to remind yourself about the big picture goals. If you are working independently, make sure you keep track of your progress in writing.

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