{"id":288,"date":"2023-04-10T21:24:43","date_gmt":"2023-04-11T04:24:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/psaurs\/?page_id=288"},"modified":"2023-07-31T07:36:27","modified_gmt":"2023-07-31T14:36:27","slug":"isabel-wilson","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/psaurs\/sample-page\/isabel-wilson\/","title":{"rendered":"Isabel Wilson"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Olivia Chung, PSA student life interviewer<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Could you tell us your major, year, and about your background?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Isabel: <\/span>Hello, my name is Isabel Wilson and I’m in integrated sciences\u2014neuroscience and <\/span>statistics. And after I graduate, I’m planning to go to grad school to do research in cognitive <\/span>neuroscience.<\/span><\/p>\n

You mentioned that you wanted to go to grad school after graduating from your undergrad, is there anything specific that you want to do?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Isabel: I know I want to use neuroimaging (like fMRI) as a method because I think the computational side is really cool. I\u2019m interested in the neurobiology of belief: What happens in the brain when people form beliefs based on evidence? Or based on inadequate evidence?\u00a0 How do prior beliefs influence our perceptions? There\u2019s a lot of ways you can approach this,\u00a0 like through memory, learning, psychotic disorders like schizophrenia, predictive coding,\u00a0 bayesian causal inference, etc.<\/span><\/p>\n

How did you decide you wanted to do research?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Isabel: \u00a0<\/span>In first year I got the chance to work on a term-long research project through a course at UBC. I was really into bryophytes (like mosses). My friend and I got the chance to go out into\u00a0 Pacific Spirit Park and collect data and then write up a report. I really enjoyed the process\u2014I\u00a0 actually enjoyed every single step, even the tedious parts! I found that I\u2019m someone who enjoys working on long-term projects\u2014and so I thought to myself, this is what I want to do.<\/p>\n

\u00a0After that, I got involved in the Rankin Lab (nematodes), which really solidified my decision.\u00a0 One of the things I liked the most was learning about cool ways to visualize data. I liked attending lab meetings and learning how other people organized their data, and I liked being able to play around with my own data as well.<\/p>\n

\u00a0The last couple of reasons are, I want my career to have a positive impact on people\u2019s mental health, and I think brain research is a good way to do that. And I want my work to be related to the questions I told you about earlier.<\/p>\n

You mentioned that you took a course for a semester\u2014did that help enhance your <\/strong>research experience and get more involved with what you want to do? Additionally, do <\/strong>you remember what course you specifically took?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Isabel: <\/span>It’s called Science One\u2014it’s like a cohort course. I highly recommend it.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Are you a part of the Science Psychology program? If so, how would you differentiate it from the Arts Psychology Program?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Isabel: Yes, I\u2019m part of the Faculty of Science. Honestly, I don’t know if there’s that big of a\u00a0 difference. I do find that I am more comfortable with writing code (than Arts Psychology students). So if that’s something that needs to be done, I can help with that. I’m also better at biology\u2014if the paper they mention anything to do with biology, I find that I understand it a\u00a0 lot easier. In terms of like if an undergrad is thinking, \u201cOh, should I go through the arts route or\u00a0 the science route (of Psychology)?\u201d I’d say the advice I got was that if you’re thinking of going into clinical psych (which I’m not) go into arts because it’s hard for a science student to compete with art students in psychology. But if you’re thinking, \u201cI’m not really sure what I\u00a0 wanna do\u2026\u201d I feel like the science route would be better. But overall, you should do whatever you want to do.<\/span><\/p>\n

Olivia: Okay. Thank you so much. That really helped a lot of students, I believe.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Isabel: <\/span>\u00a0I hope so.<\/span><\/p>\n

Could you tell us about the research you did in the Rankin Lab and in the Memory & <\/strong>Imagination Lab?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Isabel: <\/span>The Rankin Lab uses a worm called \u00a0C. elegans<\/em>. It’s like one millimeter long and it’s useful for research because it only has 302 neurons and we know what all those neurons are.\u00a0 This is different from the human brain where there are so many neurons\u2014we can’t count them. My directed studies and Work-Learn projects were both on the genetics of ASD.<\/p>\n

\u00a0In the Memory and Imagination Lab (Palombo Lab), I’m helping a PhD student Chantelle with a project on the transfer of valence, which is the process by which the negative emotionality of a\u00a0 stimulus rubs off on the stimuli around it. And that one involves using fMRI. It\u2019s been really exciting because I got the chance to actually be in the scanning room and learn about data analysis.<\/p>\n

How did you specifically get into those labs? Did you reach out to the TAs or sign up <\/strong>through emails? What was the process like?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Isabel: The first one, I just reached out to the TA of a course I was taking. My advice for other students is, a lot of students worry about having tons and tons of research experience, but what I’ve found is that once you get into one lab, it makes it like 10 times easier to get into any other labs. There’s a program that URO runs called REX, Research Experience\u2014you can take that in your first year. That could be your first step.<\/span><\/p>\n

Also, I think a lot of students overlook this,\u00a0 but participating in those HSP studies that they force you to do is actually a really good introduction to research\u2014you can see what things interest you. I got into the Social Health Lab\u00a0 that way: I participated in one of their studies and was really impressed by how well it was put\u00a0 together, so I filled out their recruitment webform and basically said \u201cI want to learn to do\u00a0 what you do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Do you think URO or the other courses you took made a way for getting into research <\/strong>positions? Moreover, if you didn\u2019t take any of them, do you think there would have been <\/strong>another chance for getting into these research positions?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Isabel: <\/span>Yeah, definitely. Emailing people is definitely a great method as well.<\/span><\/p>\n

What do you like most about being in the labs?:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Isabel: <\/span>The people definitely. In all of the labs I’ve been in, the people are super supportive and <\/span>the grad students are always willing to answer your questions and give you career advice.<\/span><\/p>\n

Obviously, when you’re an undergrad and you go into a lab, you’re not going to know anything. <\/span>But the people there are willing to invest in you\u2014and I find that super heartwarming.<\/span><\/p>\n

Are there any other future labs you would like to join, or research that you would like to <\/strong>take part in after joining the current labs you\u2019re in?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Isabel: <\/span>I’m thinking about it, but I’m not sure. I’m kind of in the direction that I wanna stay in right <\/span>now.<\/span><\/p>\n

Are there any hardships you faced or achievements you would like to highlight from your <\/strong>career\/experience(s) so far?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Isabel: As an undergrad, especially if you’re like a science student, the way science is portrayed to you is they only show you the final results\u2014like a really pretty set of graphs and it seems like everything worked out perfectly. But that’s not how science works in real life,\u00a0 especially if you’re in a wet lab. Things are messy and they don’t always work out the first time. I\u00a0 learnt the skill of dealing with things that are uncertain or that didn\u2019t end up the way I wanted them. I wouldn’t call it a hardship, but more like something that surprised me.<\/span><\/p>\n

As for achievements, I got the chance to present at a few undergrad conferences and work on <\/span>a published paper. Other than that, I’d say, my advice to myself and to other people is that don’t <\/span>focus too much on achievements. There’s so much fun to be had and things to learn that at <\/span>this stage in your life, achievements are secondary. Just enjoy the process.<\/span><\/p>\n

Are there any courses at UBC that you recommend for your field, or what are some <\/strong>learning methods\/tasks you did for the field that you\u2019re in?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Isabel: I’d recommend taking at least a couple computer science or data science courses.\u00a0 Courses like comp-sci 103 or 107, I highly recommend them. Or you can participate in beginner hackathons\u2014there are some at UBC, and they\u2019re not as intimidating as they seem. If you\u2019re in psychology, there are also some courses that teach you how to look at statistics. I think it\u2019s (Psych) 217 and 218. I haven’t taken them, but from what I\u2019ve heard they\u2019re pretty helpful.<\/span><\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Olivia Chung, PSA student life interviewer Could you tell us your major, year, and about your background? Isabel: Hello, my name is Isabel Wilson and I’m in integrated sciences\u2014neuroscience and statistics. And after I graduate, I’m planning to go to grad school to do research in cognitive neuroscience. You mentioned that you wanted to … <\/p>\n

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