Student Stories from Abroad - Kelly P.

I spent the summer working at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research (WEHI) in Melbourne, Australia.

WEHI was founded in 1915 and is Australia’s oldest medical research institute. Their aim is to be an innovative medical research institute that engages and enriches society and improves health outcomes through discovery, translation and education. My project was titled “Human genetic polymorphisms that affect anti-malarial treatment” and the ultimate goal was to be able to rapidly assess the pharmacogenomic characteristics of various populations in order to tailor antimalarial treatment in each community.This is very different from my previous project that I did here at McGill on Autism Spectrum Disorders.

As I was only a second-year undergraduate student, I believed it was important for me to explore several different fields of scientific research and to learn as much as possible.

Moving to Montreal to pursue undergraduate studies at McGill is the furthest I had ever been from home, so I was really looking forward to being part of a new lab and learning various new molecular techniques all while exploring one of the world’s most cultural cities. The idea of flying halfway around the world and moving to a brand new city where I did not know anyone initially terrified me, but it was one of the best decisions I ever made!