Amy Zamora joined ISB in August as a Systems Research Scholar.
The Systems Research Scholars Program (SRSP) is a two-year program that provides recent college undergraduates a springboard to become the next generation’s pioneers of interdisciplinary scientific research. The fully funded SRSP provides scholars mentorship by ISB faculty and immersion in the scientific research of ISB.
In this Q&A, Zamora describes her experiences at ISB, research interests, future aspirations, and much more.
ISB: How has your experience as a Systems Research Scholar at ISB been so far? What have you learned through your collaborations with Dr. Nitin Baliga and members of the Baliga Lab?
Amy Zamora: I have had an amazing experience at ISB so far. Coming into the SRSP, I was intimidated by the idea of working with peers who have significantly more research experience than I do as a recent college graduate. Despite this feeling, I was welcomed by the Baliga Lab with such enthusiasm. It made me feel right at home. They are all so excited to see how much I can and will learn through this program. They have given me a supportive environment to flourish. This environment definitely fits the collaborative attitude present throughout all of ISB, and provides me with many resources to turn to when I need guidance or simply do not have enough knowledge base to understand a particular concept.
In working with the Baliga Lab, I have first and foremost learned that this program is truly designed to challenge me in a similar way graduate school would. I have been pushed to think more critically and have been given chances to make decisions I woul
