Graduating high school at 16 is no easy feat. For Jessica Etter, it also meant the additional challenge of starting college at 17. Etter started her journey as an Oregon State University chemistry student with the goal of becoming a forensic scientist, however, she has since found a passion for research and will be starting a Ph.D. at Oregon State this fall.
Many people grow up with a fear of bugs, and above all else, a fear of spiders. Oregon State biology senior Catherine Raffin was just the same. The sight of eight spindly legs and a pair of fangs made her skin crawl, so she did the only logical thing: purchased a pet tarantula. “From a young age I was always morbidly fascinated with the insects everybody fears,” she said. “I thought it was crazy how something so small can be so terrifying.”
Over 11 weeks in 2022, 40 College of Science students worked with faculty mentors to design their own experiments, learn to use new lab equipment, get out in the field and draft papers for publication. In short, they got to be full-time research scientists.
Giulia Wood’s summer activities — or, in her case, winter — have included polar plunges into the Southern Ocean, listening to cracking glaciers and conducting research on Antarctic krill.
After graduating with a degree in biology and a certificate in medical humanities, Abigail LaVerdure has moved to Henderson, Nevada to begin her doctorate in occupational therapy (OT) at Touro University.
Pre-med Honors student Saki Nakai double majored in psychology and mathematics, completing a French minor abroad. Next year, a Fulbright award will support her research in Luxembourg.
Honors Biochemistry and Molecular Biology junior Gretchen Fujimura is one of two Oregon State students to receive the 2022 Goldwater Scholarships, the nation’s top undergraduate award for sophomores and juniors in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
Mathematics and statistics are two of the quickest-growing fields in the country, and it's not hard to guess why. In part three of this series, we examine some of the data-driven research that is helping usher in a new era of climate policy and action.
