Tartan Careers - Erik Dehkes
Sport: Football
Class Year 20-21: Junior
Major: Biological Sciences and Psychology
Internship Year, Title, and Company
Summer 2020, Research Assistant in the CAO’s Lab within the Carnegie Mellon Psychology Department, working under Dr. Mahon.
Application process: To work as an Research Assistant, I applied for a SURF grant which was due in mid March. I had to fill out a proposal for my research interests and submit with resume and bio, and was accepted in mid April.
Why did this internship interest you: This internship/position interested me because it gave me an opportunity to mix two passions — football and bio psych. I am able to give back to the game I love in a way that uses the skills I’ve learned in school so far. I’m contributing to the safety of the players and the game by doing research right at CMU.
How did you complete the internship - remotely or on-site: This position was designed to be in person, but was done remotely for the whole summer and continues to be online as I work in the fall.
Description of internship: I did/am still doing research on the changes in the brain due to contact sports, with or without a concussion. I worked an average of 25-30 hours a week, but would’ve been 35-40 had it been in person. I was mostly on my own, with the close help of a post Doc and Dr. Mahon. I met with Dr. Mahon once a week in a one on one, and another time in a larger group setting to discuss progress. I met with the post Doc multiple times a week over Zoom.
How it could have been different if not remote: I feel like being on site would’ve given more group work opportunities, or at least more chances to interact and bounce ideas off one another. Additionally, being remote due to COVID also impacted research progress and is still impacting it, but the lab as a whole and those that I work with have made the best of the situation to still give me a great experience doing research.
How did this internship shape your next move: Having this experience gave me more ideas and options for plans next summer, as I’ll likely continue to do this research for the rest of my undergraduate time. It also gives me another avenue to a gap year position before applying to medical school.