When the school year ends, most high school students look forward to a relaxing yet eventful summer. Some students head to the beach, others to work. Some students even set out to expand their knowledge with scientific research.

Scientific research in high school? Yes, it's true. Nowadays, universities and high schools are teaming up to give high school students summer opportunities that may affect their career goals and future endeavors. Programs such as these have helped me narrow my career plans from medicine to biomedical engineering. These research opportunities generate student interest in science and engineering, stimulate thinking, and increase student awareness of current scientific research. Consequently, the future of scientific research will benefit from these students, who will one day be educated and devoted professionals.

The Program

This past summer, I was a Summer Research Intern at the University of South Carolina. Last January, my Honors Physics teacher had informed our class of a program through the South Carolina Governor's School for Science and Math - a public, residential high school for juniors and seniors who are academically gifted in science and math. Initiated in 1990, this program, titled "Summer Program for Research Interns" (SPRI), provides several students enrolled at public high schools with opportunities to join Governor's School students in a number of six-week long research projects.

At the University of South Carolina, I was one of about 30 interns working through SPRI. When I began my work at USC in the Mechanical Engineering Department, I learned of a similar program through the university's College of Engineering that aimed to provide high school seniors with research opportunities. Since I was working in one of the university's engineering departments, I was also considered a participant in that program. I knew that undergraduate students were often given the chance to complete a work-study program, however, I was impressed to discover the multitude of opportunities available to high school students.

My Experiences

My experiences provided an in-depth look at the field of mechanical engineering. As an intern, I worked with a graduate student on his thesis research, which incorporated the fields of mechatronics and piezoelectrics. My work generally consisted of running various tests for the project, entering the data into a Microsoft Excel spreedsheet, and creating a variety of graphs*. Through these tests, I was able to use several types of equipment for the first time, including an Arbitrary Waveform Generator, an oscilloscope, a Linear Variable Displacement Transducer (LVDT), hydraulic pumps, and various piezoelectrical devices. I was required to create formal lab reports for every set of tests I completed, which contributed greatly to my understanding of data collection, analysis, and scientific writing. I also learned how to complete a literature search using conventional library and electronic resources.

For several days, I worked on Pro/ENGINEER, a solid-modeling program that I learned, among graduate students in a university computer lab. Eventually, I was able to design and produce a part for the project. Although the program was difficult at first, my elation at finally creating a 3-D image similar to the one presented in the tutorial far outweighed any setbacks. In addition, I was introduced to the Maple computer program, a computer algebra system (CAS) used primarily to graphically display functions given by formulas, or tables of data. This experience allowed me to gain a better understanding of the importance computer programming in engineering and any science. Because of my newly sparked interest in computer programming, I enrolled in a computer programming course at my school.

Like any researcher, I encountered setbacks. During several data collection tests, the machine I was working with broke, halting the research until it could be fixed. These setbacks taught me that flexibility and a positive attitude are necessities in research.

I also learned a lot just by being in the Mechanical Engineering lab room. During a demonstration, I observed a machine cut a 1-inch sheet of glass in the shape of a small bicycle with the aid of a high-speed water jet. I also saw a machine produce a 3-D model of an image created using Pro/ENGINEER.

SPRI offered other educational opportunities as well. Every Thursday, we had "Seminar Suppers," during which speakers presented topics such as "Ethics in Research" and "Virtue and Vice in the Conduct of Science." These sessions enabled me to take a deeper look at the politics and moral decisions that affect scientific findings, as well as the way science is presented to the public. In lieu of one Thursday seminar, we toured the Gross Anatomy Lab at the USC School of Medicine, where we saw dissected cadavers. At the conclusion of SPRI, we developed and presented posters displaying our data and analyses in the manner of an international poster fair. In this way, I was able to learn about my peers' experiences.

The university's summer research program also provided instructional sessions, including a session on the Maple computer program and FRED, the Filtration Research Engineering Demonstration, a smaller working version of Savannah River Site nuclear fuel processing plant. These sessions introduced me to the art of computer programming and helped me understand the concept of nuclear fuel processing.

Before working in this program, I was uncertain of what major and profession I would like to pursue; however, I now believe that my interests in both medicine and engineering can be combined in the field of biomedical engineering.

The Future

*Note: Due to the proprietary nature of the project, specific information cannot yet be disclosed.

Suggested Reading


University of South Carolina-College of Engineering & Information Technology