My research work in two different labs this past year has led to tremendous growth has a student and researcher. While working in a clinical research lab in an emergency department, I interact with dozens of healthcare providers, including nurses, doctors, social workers, and fellow research assistants. In addition I the medical knowledge I have gained from reading patients charts, interacting with physicians and nurses, and talking with the patients themselves, is invaluable. Furthermore, my more traditional laboratory research done in the microbial pathogenesis lab has prompted my thinking as a scientist and increased my interest as a biologist. My research lab is exploring the relation of biofilms to several different infectious diseases, including Otitis Media and post-surgical wound infections. This lab has led me to several other different scientific questions and led to a potential interest in becoming a practicing physician-scientist.