Travel, Research, Good Friends, and Good Times!

By: Jane Na

Michigan State University, Class of 2012

(Editor's note: applications for 2012 are due at the beginning of Februrary, so keep an eye out next year!)

The Fundamentals of Veterinary Science Summer School at the University of Cambridge made my last free summer of veterinary school absolutely unforgettable.  The program was amazing!  It was a chance of a life-time to be able to carry out research at a world reknowned institution in England!  It was also a chance to meet other veterinary students from around the world and learn about different countries, cultures, customs, and talk about our lab work but also travel and have fun.

I knew I wanted to make the most of the summer after my second year of veterinary school, so I found this research program by doing a Google search, applied, was selected and off I went!  The timing of the program was ideal for the Michigan State University academic calendar because after our semester ended, I was able to travel around Europe before and also a little bit after the summer school program.  At the end of the summer, I returned to the United States with a week to settle back in before school started back up.  A stipend, some travel expenses, accommodation, some meals, and bicycle for transportation were provided to all students for the summer.

Each participant was placed into a laboratory and conducted experiments or projects under the guidance of a researcher.   The lab work was not necessarily directly veterinary related, but the seminars, day trip to GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), and presentations that made up the rest of the program were heavily veterinary related.  We researched, discussed and presented on topics such as influenza, bovine tuberculosis, foot and mouth disease, and also presented on our project at the end of the summer.  Throughout the program, we had sessions on ethics, neuroscience, writing scientific papers, and  different career paths.  For our GSK day trip, we learned about the roles of the veterinary pathologist and clinical veterinarian and toured the faciliity. 

When not in our labs or in seminars, students took day trips of their own and a group of us even went on a weekend trip to Scotland.  Overall, it was a culturally and intellectually rich experience.  I gained confidence with many laboratory techniques and procedures, was given the opportunity to think about my future direction in veterinary medicine, and practiced my presentation and paper writing skills.  Were it not for this program, I would never have experienced Europe, and I wouldn’t have met all the other veterinary students that were part of the program!

Information and application materials for the Fundamentals of Veterinary Science Summer School can be found at this website http://www.vet.cam.ac.uk/summerschool/index.html.  One letter of recommendation from a faculty member is required as a part of the application, and the application deadline is in February.