Posted by Ivens Applyrs on July 24, 2017

This week I had a grad school bootcamp hosted by the McNair program. Through this bootcamp we explored the process of applying to grad schools. It provided much needed and insightful information, such as how to create a reference letter request folder. I also discussed with my iAAMCS mentor my S.M.A.R.T goal for applying to grad schools. This was a very productive week.

Posted by Ivens Applyrs on July 17, 2017

As the final weeks of my research experience approaches, I find myself scrambling to finalize my final presentation. I need to submit work by next friday to my research advisor, however there is so much more I want to research. I also have an upcoming recruitment initiative for my lab which I would love to talk about in my final presentation because it is something that I am passionate about. I just need to learn how to articulate it well.

Posted by Ivens Applyrs on July 14, 2017

I cannot believe it has been 8 weeks already. It feels like the Summer just started yesterday. This week was a big networking opportunity. I was able to receive a mentor through the IAAMCS program and connect with a few first year PhD students through the BOE program at UF. I also had the opportunity to do some recruitment work for the lab. We demoed one of the lab projects (the brain drone race) to about 24 high school students participating in the Science Quest program. In addition to this, I was also able to connect with undergraduate student interested in joining the Brain Drone team.

Posted by Ivens Applyrs on July 7, 2017

After much deliberation, I believe I have a solid research design. I worked on drafting the design and should have it approved by Dr. Gilbert before submitting an IRB. In the mean time, I have been working on my programming skills and studying for the GRE. I hope to develop better programming skills to become a better researcher in grad school.

Posted by Ivens Applyrs on June 30, 2017

I had a very important meeting with my PI Dr. Gilbert this week. It seems that I was looking at my research through the wrong lens and need to create a completely new research design. I was looking to affect too many variables in my research and possibly tainted the information. It is a bit frustrating because this new design dynamic is different from the papers I have read.