Alumni Outcomes and Testimonials

• The US Forest Service
• Novus Biologicals
• Kula Bio
• The California State Park Service
• The CT State Tick Testing Lab
• The UMass-Amherst Plant Diagnostic Clinic
• NC State Univ. Entomology and Plant Pathology
• Ohio State Univ. Plant Pathology
• The CT State Tick Testing Lab
• CAES Plant Pathology
• The Shimadzu Core Laboratory (Ferris State)
• The University of South Florida 
• Tufts Biology
• UConn Health
• UConn NRCS
• The University of Northern Florida

Graduates have entered postgraduate jobs or graduate school at: 

• BASF, Henkel
• Coleman DFM
• Unilever
• Michigan State University Department of Plant, Soil, and Microbial Sciences
• University of Delaware Department of Plant and Soil Sciences
• University of Connecticut Agricultural Education Master’s Program
• University of Connecticut School of Pharmacy
• Oregon State University Department of Crop and Soil Science
• Cambridge Isotope Laboratories
• Arbor Biotechnology
• Joyn Bio
• The US National Park Service
• University of Alberta- School of Forestry
• University of British Columbia - Department of Botany
• University of Puerto Rico- Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology
• St. George's University Medical School

Statements from former Plant Health Fellows 

"I felt that this was my first look behind the research papers and literature that I had spent my school career learning from. I gained a new perspective on science and I plan to work harder to further my field and meet other like-minded people. The friends [I made] during this experience are also a plus!"

"The most important part of the research experience was the field work that was involved. It really helped reignite the passion I had for science."

"I gained an immense amount of courage in a number of ways, both inter-personally and scientifically. This research experience paved a way for scientific understanding unlike any I had experienced before."

"I had a really great experience at CAES and learned a lot about what research in my field would look like. I was given a lot of great advice by my mentor and was able to use knowledge gained from this experience in my academics in the following semesters. This experience also prompted me to take more college courses in fields related to what I was researching this summer. Learning laboratory techniques in such an inviting environment was extremely beneficial in sculpting my career path."

"I was able to create a network of scientists that were familiar with my work ethic and potential. This helped me attain other opportunities in the future."

"[I had] a mentor that was able to adapt when the project didn't go as planned, and had a project to present at the end of the program."

"The most important aspects to me were the real life lab experience, the connection I made with my mentor, and the confidence I gained."

"Working with fellow colleagues on a project influenced my curiosity and desire to learn, and improved my team-building skills and teamwork."

"[The internship] helped me understand the field of forestry and strive to gain knowledge in that field that would later allow me to obtain a forestry career."

"I am grateful to have had the opportunity to experience scientific research in a field outside of academia. It was a new type of research for me and allowed me to explore career opportunities beyond universities. My mentor was wonderful and so eager to answer any questions that I had." 

"The ability to do the research allowed me to see another facet of what it means to be a scientist in the real world."
 

"The most important part of my research experience was my involvement and understanding of the entire research project that I was working on... Being able to be involved in the particular steps helped me understand the project, experiments, and the steps we were taking to get there. I felt I learned more about science and the research process from this experience." 

"I loved my research at the station and will recommend the experience to my peers and coworkers. I learned countless skills and techniques that I never learned in the classroom."

"The ability to plan and execute my own experiments was crucial to my learning. Through failures and difficulties, I was able to learn the optimal way to experiment and communicate my findings. By the end of the summer, I had learned why the scientific community operates as it does and also how to be a contributing member."

"This research experience taught me a tremendous amount about working as a team. In college courses we often had to do group lab-work or other activities; however, this experience taught me to work effectively as a team in a professional setting."

"The most important aspect of the internship was learning how to interpret data in a real world scenario where there are unknown results. I felt as though many students have not participated in research before and this allowed them to work side by side scientists who spend everyday working towards a goal."

"This research experience gave me skills that allowed me to advance in my laboratory career and participate in a lab on my own campus. The time frame and schedule (along with one-on-one lab work with my mentor)  allowed me to really understand my project and ask questions about anything I needed to. The presentation critiques my mentor included were extremely helpful."

"I really enjoyed having several elements to this internship beyond one research project in our assigned lab. For example we went on field trips to industry and field settings, completed a field project together, and had separate meetings to learn new things about research presentations and data analysis. These experiences were extremely enriching and invaluable."

"Before participating in the research I had little understanding of what a scientist does on a day to day basis, and I now feel like I have a much better understanding of what the career is actually like."