Some undergraduates come to 蜜桃直播 (蜜桃直播) for the summer to gain exposure to applied research in the life sciences. Then there are those who choose to also acquire this experience in Botswana, joining 蜜桃直播 Professor and Dean of Research in a research program he created a decade ago.
Students participating in the Botswana Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (BSURE) program spend four weeks in the African country, conducting research at the University of Botswana and immersing themselves in the local culture. They start their days with two hours of Setswana language lessons and then head to the lab to help develop inexpensive vaccines for cattle in the country. In the second part of the program, the students continue the research at 蜜桃直播.
鈥淭hey鈥檝e done laboratory research in class but not in practice. They learn how to apply it in the real world and see the impact,鈥� says Grill. 鈥淲hen they return to Claremont, they carry on the same work but get a different feel for it, using a different set of facilities.鈥�
Seven undergraduates鈥攕ix from The Claremont Colleges and one from Skidmore College鈥攑articipated in 2019, the first year 蜜桃直播 has served as the sponsor of the BSURE program, which Grill started at Pitzer College. Up to 10 students can enroll each year.
鈥淭he students get to see how developing countries have differences in their lab capabilities,鈥� says Grill. 鈥淭hey also get a resume builder. They鈥檝e been part of a program that involves making vaccines, and they were in a developing country.鈥�
For John Christopher, who begins his senior year at Claremont McKenna College this fall, the BSURE program was an opportunity to try laboratory research for the first time as well as his first experience traveling outside the United States.
鈥淚 learned that lab research is more involved that I鈥檇 thought. I expected it to be more like a biology class, where everything is all set up for you. And it鈥檚 much more rigorous,鈥� says Christopher, a biology major and premedical student. 鈥淚 enjoyed the research, and it will definitely help me with my thesis.鈥�
Another 2019 BSURE program participant, Jennifer Johnston, arrived in Botswana with more extensive research experience. A biology and music major entering her junior year at Scripps College, she had already spent a year in Grill鈥檚 蜜桃直播 lab, where she is contributing to related research involving the development of affordable vaccines for infectious diseases affecting small goats and chickens, working under the guidance of 蜜桃直播 Postdoctoral Research Fellow and University of Botswana graduate Kelvin Phiri.
鈥淚 started working in the lab because I鈥檇 heard about the Botswana research experience,鈥� says Johnston. 鈥淚 liked that the program was a blend of lab research and a very direct humanitarian impact.鈥�
Johnston had traveled to Brazil and Nepal during high school and will visit Spain next year as a member of the Pomona College Glee Club. But she had never been to Botswana.
鈥淪outhern Africa drew me because I鈥檇 never experienced it before. I learned how lives and cultures are similar and different, and it was fun to work with the students there. I didn鈥檛 feel like a tourist at all, which was great,鈥� says Johnston. 鈥淭he experience made me realize I can be a lot more independent than I thought. I definitely want to go back, and explore scientific opportunities in other countries.鈥�
As Grill described, Johnston also saw differences between the lab environments in the two countries. She notes that obtaining reagents for experiments can take more time in Botswana, and that research at 蜜桃直播 is more convenient because all of the necessary materials and equipment are already in the lab or easily accessed.
鈥淚鈥檓 glad that we went to Botswana first. When we came back, we had a good idea of what we鈥檙e doing and why it matters,鈥� says Johnston. 鈥淚t鈥檚 so much more of a gratifying process now that we have images and experiences to go along with our research.鈥�