Cynthia Zavala
"Looking at my research and achieving results is really exciting. I have discovered that I like the feeling of accomplishment that stems from research results."
Animal Sciences
Cynthia Zavala, a student in animal sciences, received an e-mail about a new program at the University of Illinois and knew it was an opportunity she couldn’t pass up.
She is one of the first students to participate in the New Biology Fellows program, a mentor-guided research program for undergraduate Latino students.
“I wanted to work with someone in animal sciences, so that narrowed my options pretty easily,” she said. “I chose to work with Sandra Rodriguez-Zas, a professor of animal science. We are researching the genes that cause growth in cattle in order to identify animals that will grow faster than others.”
As a New Biology Fellow, she completed a graduate-level bioinformatics course and attends seminars to prepare her for graduate school. Zavala has also taken part in a 12-week summer research immersion experience. In the year ahead, she will continue her research with an optional second summer internship experience.
“Looking at my research and achieving results is really exciting. I have discovered that I like the feeling of accomplishment that stems from research results,” she said. “It was also gratifying to be able to do the research correctly and see it work out, then be able to present it and know that I did it.”
She also believes this program has prepared her for veterinary school interviews. She gained organization, leadership, communication and presentation skills that she will use for the rest of her life.
“I would encourage people to apply because it is a new and unique experience,” she said. “Everything you do now will impact your future. I think anyone who applies will discover that in the long run, the hard work will be worth it.”
