Kiara Gómez, an upcoming fourth-year student at the University of Puerto Rico in Bayamón, came to UW–Madison as part of the Biological Interactions Summer Research Program organized by WISCIENCE. During this 10-week program, Kiara did research in the Maeda Lab, participated in professional development activities, practiced science communication skills—and even explored Madison by bike. I met up with her in the lab to learn more about her experience.
To start, could you tell me a little bit about yourself?
My name is Kiara Gómez. I am currently an upcoming fourth year student at the University of Puerto Rico in Bayamón as a biology major. And this summer, I’ve been working here at the Maeda Lab trying to characterize high aromatic Arabidopsis thaliana mutants—basically, making mutations in these plants to make them produce more aromatic amino acids and take up more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. It’s an alternative way to fight climate change.
Does this have similarities to any research that you’ve done at your school, or is it kind of a different area?
I haven’t had much experience with research before. I just volunteered in an undergraduate research lab. It does have some similar techniques, such as PCR, gel electrophoresis, and DNA extraction, but this is completely different. In my institution, I did it with fish, and here I’m doing it with plants, so it’s an entirely new experience. Since I was just volunteering before, I had no say in the actual research that I was doing; here, I have to actually put in the effort, I have to think of what next steps we could be using, and why we are doing what we are doing. Before, I didn’t have that, I would just follow instructions.
So you’re a little more independent here?
Yeah.
What led you to apply for this program? Where did you find out about it and what excited you about it?
I was searching for summer opportunities because I really wanted to try and do research in summer. This program caught my eye because, first, the theme of biological interactions, genotype, phenotype, and the environment has a lot of areas of research and it’s very interdisciplinary. And I really like that we could get into any of these without having to have a very specific topic. Everything is related to the main theme but everyone is doing something different.
I also really liked that it looked like it was catered to people that didn’t have much experience. I didn’t have much experience before, and I was worried with some programs that they may not want someone that is just beginning. I really like that on the website they say that you will have mentorship, and you will have professional development seminars. Also, being from Puerto Rico, it was very important for me to have the resources like housing, travel, and a meal plan, which made it possible for me to do this experience so far outside of my home country.
What’s one of the most interesting things you’ve learned or done here so far in this program?
One of the most interesting things that I’ve done is, basically, knowing the day to day of a researcher. Before coming here, I really had no idea what it meant. Like, what does a researcher do in their day or what work are they expected to do? And that has been one of the most interesting things that I’ve learned and that I’ve seen here.
It’s also been very interesting to see the different backgrounds of everyone in science, thanks to the faculty talks that they bring in. Knowing that everyone somehow gets to where they want to be even though they have a very different background. It’s very impactful when they start with something and they end up in something completely different that they weren’t even imagining. It’s very motivating. I personally don’t know exactly what I’m going to do next, but knowing that we can have all these roads and still be somewhere where we want to be, it’s really nice.
Is there anything that has surprised you or been unexpected about your experience?
I was expecting for us to have the end-of-program Research Symposium where we will be presenting. What I didn’t know was that we will also have the poster presentation and the research paper writing. So it was a nice surprise. We have the opportunity to do these various forms of scientific communication that I wasn’t really expecting coming here. I was just expecting to do a presentation, that’s all. But it’s been nice in one summer to do three kinds of communication in science.
I’ve also learned to ask more. Sometimes, I am still shocked over the questions that I could have asked, and I didn’t, because it didn’t even cross my mind. But everything that you do here, there’s a chance for you to learn more and to ask more questions.
What excites you about doing research in general?
Well, I think just working towards this one very specific goal that you have, not everyone has that goal. This is something very personal, I would say. I like learning about it, this specific thing, it feels really unique to me. Also, if the project works, you can make it the first steps to make changes.
Also in research, what you might consider failure isn’t really a failure, since you can take that as like, oh, I can use this new data to make my project better. I really like that aspect of research. There’s no wrong answer—you just have to keep going.
Are there things that you’ve learned or done here that you think are going to impact you in the future?
Since this is my first time doing summer research, I didn’t really know what to expect. But now that I’m here, I’m motivated to do it again. I have a summer left and I want to do another summer of research, and maybe that way, continue my way to grad school. Coming here, I wasn’t really sure if I wanted to do a professional career or a research career, but I’m really liking research, so I think that this program may have been impactful in my decision. I still need to see which one I will do. I will seek out more opportunities to do research next summer.
The skills that we learn here are also very transferable. We have done science communication orally and also written. So it doesn’t matter where exactly I go, I already have learned those skills. I think that’s impactful for my professional development.
Is there anything that you would want to tell other students about this program, people who are considering applying?
Don’t be afraid of not having experience. I thought maybe because I didn’t have much under my sleeve, that I wouldn’t be a good candidate. But this is exactly what this program is for. It’s for us to come and get the experience and learn. And even if you’re not sure if you want to do research, do it. It’s a really nice learning experience.
Also, if you get accepted and come here, try to connect with people. I’m certain that you will find someone that relates to you. Finding the support here is really nice. The support from my mentors, my PI, and also the Badger Buddies has been really helpful. So always stick out, ask questions.
So have you found those connections with other students in the program?
Yeah, I have found connections with students in my program and also other programs that are staying in our same dorm. It’s been really nice having all these people. I wasn’t expecting to really make friends here, but it’s been completely the opposite. Since we are all here for the same thing, like we all want to do research and we all want to have these experiences, people are very willing to be with you and share experiences and go out.
Have you had time to go out and explore Madison at all?
Yeah, I have. I went to the zoo, I went to the new gym that has ice skating and rock climbing, I went to the farmers’ market. I’ve been biking around. That’s my advice: get the monthly bike pass! It’s really nice going around on the bike and seeing everything. Madison is really pretty, the people are really nice, too. I’ve been eating out on State Street—there’s some nice places. Also, the activities that they do sometimes in the Capitol and in Memorial Union. I go and do the arts that they do there. If you’re bored, just go outside! There’s things to do.
