2008 Woodie Awards
Bursting the Bubble
NIH
Naveen Hussain
Issue date: 11/5/04 Section: Arts & Features
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Maryland vs. Australia? If I had gotten a dollar for every disappointed face I saw when I told them that I was going to the National Institute of Health (NIH), I think I would be able to pay for medical school on my own. Well, maybe that's an exaggeration, but I definitely surprised most of my friends last year when they found out that I had decided to go to NIH and declined an opportunity to go to Australia.
Most of them just said something like: "Oh I am happy for you. It will be great for your career," a.k.a "Its sad that you have to work in a lab instead of go abroad, but I guess I can understand," while others were more honest and tried to convince me to change my mind. Over and over, I heard things like: "You do realize that its not abroad, right? You are going to Maryland...it's not even outside the US!" Or, as one of my friends pointed out: "The whole point of study abroad is for us to meet different people. You should go abroad next year. You can go to DC whenever you want." And then of course my favorite was: "I can't believe you are going on the geek study group." Although these comments weren't able to convince me to go to Australia over NIH, they did diminish my excitement of going to Washington, DC. By the end of sophomore year I was more stressed out than excited about NIH.
Half way through my semester in DC now, I am so glad I didn't let other people's perceptions of the NIH study group deter me from coming here. Yes, it's true, NIH is not outside the US, but in many ways the NIH experience is completely out of this world! As for not being able to meet new people: I am living with a Canadian, a Trinidadian and a girl from Colorado State University! My work place is like a little United Nations too. I work in a lab with researchers from Japan, China, Algeria, Italy, Mississippi and Arizona. And as for it being the geek study group... well I guess they were not wrong about everything, but I fit right in.
The thing that I love most about the NIH study group is the fluidity in the way it is structured. I really enjoy the independence each individual member has with regards to their work as well as their social life. We all work in our own labs and have our own projects, and while the expectations from work are high, we are free to chose our own work hours and schedules. Some students work the regular nine to five workdays, while others enjoy starting late and working into the night. This flexibility allows us extra time to invest in other non-lab related work. From eating out, to film festivals, cultural fairs, religious events, museums, book readings and just strolling around the city, the options here are limitless. There has not been a single weekend where I haven't had plans to do something, if not multiple plans. I have been in DC for almost four months now, and I have been exploring quite a bit, both by myself, and with my friends, but I feel like I haven't even scratched the surface of all Washington has to offer yet.
Most of them just said something like: "Oh I am happy for you. It will be great for your career," a.k.a "Its sad that you have to work in a lab instead of go abroad, but I guess I can understand," while others were more honest and tried to convince me to change my mind. Over and over, I heard things like: "You do realize that its not abroad, right? You are going to Maryland...it's not even outside the US!" Or, as one of my friends pointed out: "The whole point of study abroad is for us to meet different people. You should go abroad next year. You can go to DC whenever you want." And then of course my favorite was: "I can't believe you are going on the geek study group." Although these comments weren't able to convince me to go to Australia over NIH, they did diminish my excitement of going to Washington, DC. By the end of sophomore year I was more stressed out than excited about NIH.
Half way through my semester in DC now, I am so glad I didn't let other people's perceptions of the NIH study group deter me from coming here. Yes, it's true, NIH is not outside the US, but in many ways the NIH experience is completely out of this world! As for not being able to meet new people: I am living with a Canadian, a Trinidadian and a girl from Colorado State University! My work place is like a little United Nations too. I work in a lab with researchers from Japan, China, Algeria, Italy, Mississippi and Arizona. And as for it being the geek study group... well I guess they were not wrong about everything, but I fit right in.
The thing that I love most about the NIH study group is the fluidity in the way it is structured. I really enjoy the independence each individual member has with regards to their work as well as their social life. We all work in our own labs and have our own projects, and while the expectations from work are high, we are free to chose our own work hours and schedules. Some students work the regular nine to five workdays, while others enjoy starting late and working into the night. This flexibility allows us extra time to invest in other non-lab related work. From eating out, to film festivals, cultural fairs, religious events, museums, book readings and just strolling around the city, the options here are limitless. There has not been a single weekend where I haven't had plans to do something, if not multiple plans. I have been in DC for almost four months now, and I have been exploring quite a bit, both by myself, and with my friends, but I feel like I haven't even scratched the surface of all Washington has to offer yet.