SROP Testimonial!

As told by Chigo Ekeke

I participated in the REU program, but the experience was still priceless. It was a very humbling experience, because I had to exercise practical knowledge all summer. I was able to strengthen my efficiency, when performing experiments that contained no absolute answer. A lot of what I did was time-demanding and very tedious. Since I worked closely with the REU program and was able to attend many of the program’s seminars and events, other opportunities have opened to me. For this upcoming summer, I have been given the opportunity to work as an undergraduate researcher for Dr. Venkat Gopalan. Many of the seminars/events were geared to helping the students with their research presentations, understanding the elements of research, and post-college plans (i.e. graduate School, professional school, etc).


Aside from working in the lab, I was able to network with the other students that were a part of the REU program, as well as the professors. My research this summer focused on the knowledge and reconstitution of RNase P in vitro. RNase P is a enzyme that helps in the maturation of tRNA (which is necessary for your proteins to be present). By performing these experiements and understanding the research, I had a better understanding of how nature works at the biochemical level. I was fortunate enough to learn alot about biochemistry, before taking any biochemistry courses.