Imagine: it's summertime in New York, you are about to embark on your senior year of college, and you have just eaten dinner with James Watson, co-discoverer of the double helix shape of DNA and Director of Cold Spring Laboratories, at his home.

Sound unbelievable? True, this is not an opportunity that comes along every day, and it does not come easy by any means, but Vishal Patel, a fourth-year bioengineering student who will be pursuing a Ph. D. in biological and biomedical sciences at Harvard University next fall, has done this and a whole lot more. Every summer since attending UIC as an undergraduate, Patel has traveled to a different research institution to work on an assortment of projects. Freshman year he worked at the Argonne National Laboratory in Argonne, IL, a branch of the United States Department of Energy. Sophomore year, he traveled to London, UK through the Great Cities London Program (Contemporary Urban Issues) and then worked for the United States Public Health Services in Maryland. This past summer he was among twenty-five undergraduates, hailing from all different countries and parts of the US, to have earned the privilege of interning at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) in Cold Spring Harbor, NY.

As Patel demonstrates, for many pre-health students, summer vacation is not just a time for relaxation, but an opportunity to get ahead. Taking summer classes, volunteering, and working are among many worthwhile options, but pursuing summer internships may be a good choice for undergrads who want to gain some real hands-on experience in their future field. A common question, however, that many students wonder is-is it really worth it? Will I really get hands-on experience and learn valuable training that I will not learn elsewhere? Patel's answer is a an emphatic "absolutely."

Although he says he has learned a lot from all the places he has interned, Patel's experience at CSHL was by far the most compelling. The summer program at CSHL is called the Undergraduate Research Program, and appropriately, all the students who take part in the program are affectionately known as URPs. A day in the life of an URP was not an easy task; 8 AM to midnight days and long hours Saturdays and Sundays were not uncommon. "No one's telling you to work that much, but you just do," Patel says. "It's such a stimulating environment, for you are surrounded by so many people who are so good at what they do." As an URP, he had the chance to work with some of the best scientists in the world, hear famous keynote speakers, and actually gain hands-on experience and learn new techniques essential to becoming a better scientist. URPs were also expected to give presentations to their peers, faculty and other lab workers and were grilled on their research as real scientists would expect would expect to be. Patel says, "Everything I learned there, such as various scientific techniques and methodology, I still use on a daily basis in the lab I work at here on campus. Although being an URP wasn't always easy, the experience helped me build a strong work ethic and become a better scientist."

However, this is not to say that internships mean no chance for enjoyment and relaxation. Being less than an hour from New York City, URPs had opportunities to venture into the city and explore, or simply enjoy the beautiful scenery of the Cold Spring Harbor area. Patel recalls one weekend when some friends visited, and he didn't get a wink of sleep - and not because he was out all the time having fun. As a dedicated URP, every night while his friends slept, Patel rode the train back to CSHL to work, only returning to Manhattan in the morning in time to meet his friends for breakfast and the day's festivities. Although it was tiring, he claims it was fun and one of his most memorable weekends. One can take a scientist out of the lab, but not the lab out of the scientist.

Perhaps the biggest question for those interested in pursuing internships is how exactly to go about finding one that is right for them. It often depends on the type of place and location, for different companies or laboratories will have varying requirements and application processes and deadlines. For example, some institutions may ask for essays as to how the research will complement future career goals, recommendations from professors, and official school transcripts. However, generally the biggest must have is some kind of research experience. Anyone who wants to apply anywhere, whether it is to intensive labs like CSHL or the National Institute of Health (NIH), should try and gain some research experience as soon as possible. Here at UIC, a useful place to start searching for research opportunities is the Undergraduate Research Assistant (URA) program, which has more than three hundred professors who are interested in having undergraduate research assistants.

Patel's last words of advice? "Don't go expecting to study for the MCAT's or the DAT's...while you are there, you are living and breathing the life of a scientist. You will go to lunch and talk science...get advice from your peers about what went wrong or right [in an experiment], and how to make it better...you'll go back and try it...and come back for dinner and do the same thing." Although places like CSHL may not be right for everyone, there are other places, which are not quite as intense, that are well suited for the average pre-health student just looking for some research experience-thus, research about what to expect must be done before applying. As for dinner with James Watson, "it was a humbling [experience] to be in such a historic place and be around so many amazing people...it is an experience I will never forget."

Mindy is second-year student double majoring in Biology and Spanish. She aspires to specialize in the medical field of pediatrics.