Malaysian Palm Oil Board
Molecular Biology(Genomics) Internship
Unpaid non-credit internship (8 weeks). Research in government organisation.
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Would you recommend your internship to a friend?
No.
Shao Yim Eo
Connect with Shao on LinkedIn if you have any questions:
What were you looking to gain from your experience?
I wished to know if I will be able to dedicate 10 years or more to do research and know more about how research activities are being conducted within a government organisation.
What attracted you to the company you interned with?
MPOB is the government agency responsible for the promotion and development of the palm oil industry in Malaysia. The objective of most research activities is to help the small and medium plantation to increase their productivity of palm oil and reduce the negative impacts on the environment.
What was a typical working day like?
Preparing nutrient broth, plating, seeding, storing the plates in the fridge, extracting the leaves, cotyledons and roots for tissue culture purposes, microscopy etc.
What did you enjoy about your internship?
I enjoyed having a discussion with my research partner and working with her as a team to ensure that we complete all the tasks given by the supervisor. Also, listening to the research experience from my supervisor and other lab assistants gave me a better insight into the working culture at MPOB.
What was the most challenging part?
I found observing the level of staining of roots, leaves and cotyledons of Arabidopsis is technically challenging because the change of room lighting will also affect the saturation and brightness of the images, leading to wrong interpretation. Most of the techniques used were really laborious and time-consuming, but at the same time, rewarding.
How did the experience benefit your career?
Taking part in this program has definitely helped me to decide my future career. I realised that research is highly driven by passion and tenacity. It takes an incredibly large amount of time, dedication and patience and I need to be passionate enough to sustain my work as a researcher.
What is one advice that you would give to others who are planning to do an internship?
I would strongly recommend students who are planning to do an internship to start their application as early as possible.
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Industry