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  • Essay / My future career: a graduate program in biomedical engineering

    Most scientists are curious, but only some scientists work on applications, and that is where my professional intentions lie. I am a scientist motivated by problems in modern health care. I seek to identify these problems and use science, engineering and technology to research and develop innovative solutions. I would like to further develop as a scientist by enrolling in the Biomedical Engineering graduate program at Stanford University. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Stanford is a leading institution in translational biomedical research, which is highly interdisciplinary. This collaboration of scientists, engineers and clinicians can result in the rapid production of tools, devices, techniques and procedures to improve health care. To be successful in this business, an individual must have aptitude for their field and the abilities to conduct research, collaborate with other fields, and identify problems or opportunities. My academic and professional background has been a diverse mix of bioengineering and entrepreneurship. These experiences allowed me to develop and practice the aforementioned skills essential to translational biomedical research. I graduated from Washington State University (WSU) with a Bachelor of Science in Bioengineering in May 2014. During my undergraduate career, I demonstrated strong aptitude in the field of bioengineering. I have received several scholarships and awards. Most notable were those from the WSU College of Engineering and Architecture: Junior Bioengineer of the Year and Bioengineering Teaching Assistant of the Year. This shows that I can both learn and communicate in my field. I believe this is a strong indicator that I can help advance the field of bioengineering in my current and future research. Since graduating, I have worked at the Muscle Biology Center at my alma mater, where I have gained substantial research experience. We are conducting a comparative study on in situ muscle mechanics of wild-type mice compared to the murine model of limb-girdle muscular dystrophy P448L 2I (LGMD2i). Under the direction of Dr. Dan Rodgers, associate professor in the Department of Animal Sciences and director of the Washington Center for Muscle Biology, and Dr. David Lin, associate professor in the School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, I designed and carried out the experiments. We use a dual-control force and length transducer to perform measurements on surgically isolated hindlimb muscles. From this we can infer important relationships between muscle strength, length, and velocity, which are indicators of muscle architecture and kinetics. As a scientist, I had to learn how to handle, administer anesthesia, and perform surgery on live animals. As an engineer, I had to practice instrumentation, data analysis and computer programming. The project is still young, so we don't have any publications or submissions yet. However, I managed to create a new technique to stabilize and test the medial gastrocnemius muscle of a mouse in situ. This appointment confirmed both my desire and my ability to conduct research. Over the past two years, I have participated in significant projects that demonstrate my abilities to identify problems or opportunities and then collaborate across multiple domains..