My learning expectations were to research and learn about various clinical trials for glioblastomas, breast cancer, and lung cancers and to gain insight into the market landscape for drug development. I built a project that can be used as a reference for hundreds of different clinical trials containing drug names, primary competitions, mechanisms, routes of administration, and company data. I primarily conducted my detailed research within clinicaltrials.gov but utilized many other scientific sources as well. I have been working on my project since September. In December, I had the opportunity to present my project results to the management team at Reglagene.
As an intern at Reglagene, I learned the components of a clinical trial and the time, resources, and marketing that are put into it. I saw that clinical trials mostly have three objectives: creating new drugs, repurposing old drugs, or trying to improve a current treatment method. I noticed that new drugs are commonly small-molecule drugs or biologics and also learned many objectives of big pharmaceutical companies to incorporate into my project. These specific data points helped create a more cohesive image of the market landscape, as well as strengthened my understanding of the mechanisms of small molecule drugs and biologics from the foundation of my major-specific courses from school. Through lots of hard work and time, I became efficient in evaluating clinical results and their relevance to the company and future marketing. While doing so, I was guided by Dr. Abrahamson to ensure I was fulfilling the expectations of this project. He is a huge part of my success in this internship.
(At right, AZAdvances Intern, Katie Nguyen with her mentor, Dr. Michael Abrahamson.)
I really enjoyed and am grateful for my time here at Reglagene. I learned so much about pharmaceutical sciences in an industry context while being involved in a startup. One of the biggest takeaways from my experience is learning about drugs, clinical trials, and pharmaceutical companies to form a self-paced project that many others within the company can benefit from. Additionally, I loved the atmosphere of Reglagene and my supervisors as well.
Everyone was willing to mentor me and I was so honored to be given valuable knowledge and advice. I loved the unity here, and thanks to AZAdvances I am honored to say that I was able to positively impact Reglagene’s success.
About The AZAdvances Talent Internship Program
The AZAdvances Talent Internship Program provides students with the ability to obtain real-word experience. Working as an intern within a company helps students explore career paths, strengthen their educational applications, and build their resume.
AZAdvances Talent Interns are hired by the Opportunity Through Entrepreneurship Foundation, mentored by the AZAdvances team on how to make the most of their internship experience, and then placed with local life science companies in a structured program designed to optimize both the intern’s and the mentor’s experience.
At the end of each internship experience, the intern shares their experience in a summary report to AZAdvances.
By ensuring that all AZAdvances Talent Interns have access to paid positions, this program also addresses a significant equity barrier that many students face today.