Sun Health Research Institute Summer Internship offers opportunities to future scientists
SUN CITY, Ariz. (June 17, 2009) – Sixteen of the country’s brightest high school and college undergraduate students are furthering their science education and beginning to explore careers in science and health care at Banner Health's Sun Health Research Institute Summer Intern Program.
Now in its tenth year, this award-winning program nurtures the next generation of high-caliber individuals to fulfill the growing need of the nation’s and Arizona’s medical and bioscience industries. Ninety-eight percent of summer interns have pursued an undergraduate degree in science or health care, and many more have gone on to pursue graduate degrees in the field.
With career aspirations ranging from physician to cancer researcher, these students were selected from hundreds of applicants from across the country for the eight-week paid internship program. While many call the Valley home, they attend prestigious colleges and high schools locally and around the country.
Students work alongside world-renowned researchers, participating in groundbreaking research studies on Alzheimer’s, cardiovascular disease and other diseases while learning basic scientific techniques like pipetting, cell culture isolation and working with DNA.
“The hands on nature of the program, access to world-class research coupled by individual mentorship by some of the greatest research minds is an opportunity of a lifetime for these students,” says Brian Browne, director of the summer internship program. The program ends on July 31 with a symposium where students will present their summer research projects.
About Sun Health Research Institute
For 21 years, Sun Health Research Institute, part of nonprofit Banner Health, has been a leader nationally and internationally in the effort to find answers to disorders of aging including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, arthritis and prostate cancer. The institute, together with its Arizona Alzheimer’s Consortium partners, has been designated by the National Institutes of Health as one of just 31 Alzheimer’s Disease Centers in the nation. The institute’s Cleo Roberts Center for Clinical Research takes laboratory discoveries to clinical trials that foster hope for new treatments. Banner Health is Arizona’s leading health care provider and second largest private employer. For more information, visit www.shri.org and www.bannerhealth.com.
