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2019 Summer Internship Guest Blog Post #31 by Yuanyuan He

Sydney Everett (Staff)
August 20, 2019
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Throughout the summer, Skandalaris Center Summer Internship Program participants will be writing guest blog posts about their internship experience. Following is one such post. 

Shape the Future Career Path

By Yuanyuan He (EN ’20)

Common questions I get from people are inquiries into my field of study and professional interests. Pursuing a career in academia, working in biotechnology or pharmaceutical companies, and being a self-employed artist are some of the options that I have personally considered. In addition to knowing that it’s okay to be uncertain about the future, I always aim to take action in shaping the unforeseeable path that brings me a sense of fulfillment.

I’m Yuanyuan He, a rising senior studying biomedical engineering with minor in computer science and fine arts. This summer I am interning at a medical device company, Pulse Therapeutics, Inc, that designs magnet-based drug delivery system to accelerate the rate of dissolving blood clots. The internship is part of the Skandalaris Summer Internship Program that supports WashU students as they gain insights into the world of entrepreneurship and startup companies.

Through my previous experiences as an undergraduate researcher working in academic labs, I discovered what it is like to design experiments, analyze experimental data, and troubleshoot for problems, and gradually developed interests in pursuing a graduate degree in biomedical engineering. In order to obtain a more comprehensive view of a potential career path as a biomedical engineer, I applied for the Skandalaris Summer Internship Program to learn about the work environment and operation of biotech startups and meet other motivated research scientists.

One highlight of the internship experience was applying the coding skills that I learned through coursework to solve biomedical problems. A project that I worked on was to measure the travel velocity of magnetically driven microbeads in cellular fluid using webcam and image analysis platform. My familiarity with Matlab enabled me to analyze the images in a quantitative fashion and generate data accurately and efficiently. My conversation with my peers at Pulse Therapeutics offered me both ideas on my internship projects and insights on pursuing a career in the biotech field. Being part of the Center for Emerging Technologies and the Cortex area also gave me the opportunity to network with other professional to hear about their roles and work.

I am sincerely honored to participate in the Skandalaris Summer Internship Program, work at Pulse Therapeutics as a summer intern, and meet other inspiring interns, co workers and professionals who are motivated to make a difference in the world. While there’s no need to see clearly the career path that I want to take, I find it crucial to reach out to people, make informed decisions, and actively explore career interests. Make each experience a personally rewarding adventure.

Link to the company website: https://euphratesvascular.com