Veronica Galvin

I worked in the Lombroso lab for 8 weeks in the summer of 2010. I worked as a research assistant with a post doc helping with a large schizophrenia project measuring the affect of three neuroleptics on the STEP mediated pathway in the cortex, hippocampus and striatum. I worked the previous summer in a different research lab, but my knowledge and abilities were both extensively strengthened during my stay in the Lombroso lab. I immediately felt welcome and comfortable, and was constantly surprised at how much I was trusted with throughout the summer. Being able to run a western blot on my own from start to finish was terrifying at first, but also helped me find my bearings and feel confident in my abilities much faster and more effectively than I ever would have thought possible. Having readings and discussions of chapters and various papers assigned by Dr. Lombroso throughout the summer also pushed me to learn and understand an incredible amount for such a short period of time. I was quite busy, and hard work was definitely required to master the material and begin to understand all the processes at work with the projects in the lab, but the skills and knowledge I gained will stay with me for years to come, and hopefully help me in my pursuits in a career in cognitive neuroscience. Working in the Lombroso lab has been an invaluable experience, and one I would recommend to any student willing to work hard and who is interested in neuroscience as a potential career.