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Taking honours in the lab

25 March 2009

Rebecca Piganis

Monash student Rebecca Piganis is completing research at the Monash Institute of Medical Research thanks to the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program.

The program is designed to give undergraduate students an early opportunity to experience a research laboratory and gain insight into careers in biomedical research, through paid casual employment.

Students undertake a research project alongside other research staff and students, and are supervised by a mentor.

Projects available under the program cover a wide range of research fields and technical approaches, complementing coursework and integrating practical research into undergraduate study.

Rebecca was placed at the Centre for Innate Immunity and Infectious Disease at the research institute during the final year of her undergraduate degree in biomedical science at Monash. She worked with Professor Paul Herzog and Dr Nicky de Weerd.

"I wasn't sure what I wanted to do as a long-term career," Rebecca said.

"The Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program introduced me to what science research and lab work was all about.

"I liked it so much that I stayed on in Professor Herzog's lab and completed an Honours degree; I'm now studying for my PhD."

The Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program is open to undergraduates in any Victorian tertiary institution and successful applicants are paid an hourly casual rate for the time they work on their project.

Applications for the winter 2009 UROP round are open from 1 to 20 April 2009.

For more information and the online application form visit the Bio21 Cluster website.