By Lily Rutherford
Through the generous donations of alumna Carolina Naar, (Ph.D. Food Science and Technology ‘07), the Smith Center was able to host two student interns from the Universidad de los Andes. Naar is passionate about building collaborations between UTIA and her home country of Colombia. Having completed her bachelor’s degree at UniAndes, it seemed natural to help establish the connection between her two alma maters. We’re excited to highlight the experience these two students had while at UT and share the impact of these internships.
Javier Andrés García Peñaros is in his final year of undergraduate education. He completed his biology degree last year. Now, he is about to officially start his last semester and finish his double major in microbiology.
Peñaros is especially interested in studying topics related to venomous insects and infectious diseases. He also has his sights set on going to grad school to continue his studies after the end of this semester. Wanting to deepen his experience before finishing his degree, he decided to look for an opportunity outside of his comfort zone. This goal led him to his recent internship at UTIA.
Thinking back on his expectations for the program, Javier said the chance to work with cell line cultures stuck out to him.
“Back home, that equipment is pretty expensive. So, in the labs, it’s not always accessible to teach those techniques. My expectation was that I was going to get to learn that technique, and I also wanted to get some experience, see how it is outside of Colombia, and build a network.”
Delving into his time on campus, he explained what working in a lab here was like. He worked with Doris D’Souza, a professor in the Department of Food Science, and got to focus on flies that typically inhabit dairy farms and test what kind of viruses they could potentially transmit to humans and cows. To do this, he conducted experiments with natural extracts to gauge if they inactivated viruses. Elaborating on this experiment, he emphasized how isolating those pathogens allowed them to gain insight into whether those bacteria were resistant to antibiotics and assess possible risks those flies could carry.
On his favorite aspects of his time in the program, Peñaros said, “My biggest highlight, in an academic sense, is that I now have the skills to be able to raise cells and manage viruses in a lab. It’s something I appreciate a lot because this knowledge opens doors to a lot of research opportunities. This internship also helped me as my first job experience. I had to adhere to a nine to five and administrate my own stuff. I had not lived on my own before, so I think that also gave me a little bit more of a perspective on a more independent lifestyle.”
In addition, he said he appreciated meeting a lot of people and gaining an experience outside of his own culture and comfort zone. We also inquired into the most surprising part of his experience. Javier referenced how it was unlike the image he had had of the U.S before studying here. Knoxville felt much more like a small town than he expected where he was able to feel safe exploring and meet many friendly people.
Peñaros listed places like the UT Creamery, Dairy Queen, and Ben and Jerry’s as some of his most loved ice cream spots. “I think the stuff I will miss the most, that I do love a lot, is American ice cream. You guys have amazing ice cream.”
Closing out his review of the time he spent completing his internship, there were many things he said he would miss. Talking with his work partners, the peace and quiet of Knoxville, and the smaller city energy compared to his home were all parts he added to the list.
He emphasized how the value of an experience like this one is virtually priceless. International experience will expose you to different topics of research or work and expose you to different people. In this case, he said getting out of his comfort zone, speaking English, and networking were aspects he hopes to harness in his professional life.
Javier had one final message to share with anyone interested in interning at UTIA and partnering with the Smith Center.
“The Smith Center made interning here so accessible. The help you get from this office is straight-forward and clear. You know how it’ll happen. You’ll be informed,” he said. “The people at UTIA are also so friendly. If this is your first internship and you have a choice to do it here, then I can’t recommend that enough. UTIA really embodies the Volunteer Spirit – it’s very welcoming.”