Ashley Suraj Hermon, IISER Bhopal's student in Biological Sciences, has completed his two month internship at the IGFL in mid-2022.
In the frame of the international strategies and common actions of the Écoles normales supérieures in France, ENS de Lyon has taken the lead in the creation of a partnership with the Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research (IISER) in India.
In 2018 the ENS-IISER network implemented a framework agreement allowing their institutions to collaborate on different levels: development of exchange programs, joint training, seminars, joint research and publications, as well as research internships.
Ashley Suraj Hermon feedback
3rd year of BS-MS integrated degree in Biological Sciences at IISER Bhopal, intern at IGFL in spring 2022
My name is Ashley Suraj Hermon, I am a 20 years old student in 3rd year of BS-MS integrated degree in Biological Sciences at IISER Bhopal, India and I have successfully completed a 2 months internship through the IISER-ENS Internship program.
I was looking for an internship in research in the field of science and knew that France offered good opportunities for international students in scientific research.
I heard about the joint program between my institution and ENS de Lyon which offered internship in biology, more specifically my field of research, developmental biology, so I chose to apply.
After two selection rounds and an interview I was chosen to undertake an internship under the supervision of Dr. Julie Carnesecchi at the Ontogenesis and Molecular Interactions Team of the Institute of Functional Genomics of Lyon.
Going abroad
I was a bit nervous to go so far away from home as I was about to leave India for the first time in my life so I asked former students of the program about their experience at ENS de Lyon and the internship in general.
They gave me a really good feedback regarding their experience as an intern at ENS de Lyon and of their time in France as well.
I arrived in Lyon in May 2022 where my instructor welcomed me and helped me throughout the initial administrative procedures for accommodation.
The internship
All the people in my lab were very nice and friendly towards me, I always felt welcomed there. I did not know any French when I arrived so I was a bit nervous about communicating with others, fortunately I got to know English speakers and it helped a lot. I was able to interact with other students, most people in my laboratory made an effort to speak English when interacting with me.
This internship expanded my horizon to think in a much broader perspective. It also gave me a glimpse of what a researcher's life can be and what sort of dedication and motivation is needed to work in this field.
This internship was a good experience for me. I acquired a lot of essential skills needed to really plan out my experiments beforehand and execute them in a timely manner.
This experience has definitely helped me confirm my path forward in the research field. Being quite interested in the field of Developmental Biology and Cancer Biology, I wish to continue exploring this research field in the future through a PhD.
Personal experience in France
As people really tried to interact with me, I became friends with three French interns who were working at the same laboratory.
I also used my free time to visit France as it was one of my goal for undertaking this trip. I really wanted to see beautiful places and architectural marvels of France so during the week-end I would explore, discover the French cuisine and became quite fond of French deserts and cheese. I truly appreciated the French culture and the way French people are very caring with each other.
Overall feedback?
Surely I would 100% recommend a fellow student aspiring for a research career to apply for the internship at ENS de Lyon. I think this foreign exposure is quite helpful in building a good career in the future.