Audrey Shin

About Me

Participating in Talaria expanded my knowledge in a field that I have been interested in. Living in a more rural area, I have limited opportunities to participate in research as well as taking more classes, such as physics, that could help me with understanding my topic more. Physics plays an integral role in biomechanical studies, and with not being able to take physics or do research, participating in Talaria has filled in those gaps.

Research Experience

At first, I did not know anything about the topic of my research project. I did not know much about cellular biology nor did I take physics, which made me excited. After taking a glimpse at the article, the unfamiliar scientific words made it difficult to understand, so I was a bit nervous. Reading more in the article, I began to understand the general idea, and soon more and more about the details. I became more confident in writing a research paper, which grew my interest in doing more research in that area of study.

Mentorship Experience

My experience was great with my mentor. During our first meeting, he gave me advice as to not be too intimidated by the unfamiliar words and to not have to know about everything since the researchers still had gaps. His advice stuck with me and encouraged me throughout the program experience. He also suggested a research plan to structure out our project and constantly followed-up with my progress.

Favorite Part of Talaria

My favorite part about participating in Talaria was being able to communicate one-on-one with a mentor whose experienced in by desired field of area and also learning about the formal scientific writing techniques.

Who I Recommend Talaria For

I would recommend Talaria for self-driven and passionate individuals. We work with mentors in completing our research projects; however, a lot of the research and writing must be done individually. Mentors are there to guide the mentees, and in order for a mentee to do valuable research, the mentee must have passion in the desired study while carrying out observations and information about the topic.

Advice for Future Applicants

Participating in Talaria is a valuable experience, whether or not you have done research before. Communicating one-on-one with a mentor with a lot of experience on your desired topic of research, you could learn a lot more on a topic that you are interested in. Your mentor will not only explain the specific topic but also help you with writing formal scientific written techniques.