CIRP REU ALUMNI STORIES
CHOP REU Training Testimonial - Drew Annable - Summer 2026
CHOP Mentor(s): Jalaj Maheshwari, MSE
"This is the most rewarding job experience I have had. The work environment's low-pressure, high-throughput approach to the workday was enjoyable. I was able to learn and develop as an engineer. The housing was fun with the other interns and allowed me flexibility in my living arrangements. Overall, 10/10 would apply again."Injury Science Research Experiences for Undergraduates Student (Summer 202…
CHOP REU Training Testimonial - Elizabeth Wiese - Summer 2026
CHOP Mentor(s): Daniel J. Corwin, MD, MSCE and Carlyn Patterson Gentile, MD, PhD
"My summer at CHOP in CIRP's REU program was an amazing and impactful experience both for my career development as a researcher and my personal development. I got to work with two amazing mentors, Dr. Dan Corwin and Dr. Carlyn Gentile, on projects spanning from concussion care to light exposure. In addition to gaining valuable clinical research experience, working with these two physician research…
CHOP REU Training Testimonial - Giovanni Ciro - Summer 2026
CHOP Mentor(s): Scott Haag, PhD
"My experience here has been nothing short of phenomenal. Right on day one, I became directly involved with my research team working on an algorithm to better analyze the evolution of COVID-19. I was challenged to do my best work each and every day, and I looked forward to coming into an environment where everyone was equally passionate about making a difference. Throughout my time here, I also be…
CHOP REU Training Testimonial - Hannah Ruohoniemi - Summer 2026
CHOP Mentor(s): Valentina Graci, PhD
"I had a wonderful experience as an REU intern at CHOP. Under the mentorship of Dr. Valentina Graci, I learned and applied a novel statistical method to analyze force plate data collected from adolescents who had undergone anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. This experience strengthened both my technical skills and my understanding of how biomechanics research can be used to address c…
CHOP REU Training Testimonial - Katie Canzanese - Summer 2026
CHOP Mentor(s): Valentina Graci, PhD
"My experience with the CIRP Research Experiences for Undergraduates program was incredibly valuable, both academically and personally. Throughout the summer, I had the opportunity to be involved in many different aspects of the research process, from analysis to interpreting results and presenting my work. I especially appreciated being able to take ownership of my project while still having the…
CHOP REU Training Testimonial - Kingsley Royal - Summer 2026
CHOP Mentor(s): Elizabeth Silvestro, PhD
"I had a wonderful experience as a member of the 2026 CIRP REU Program. My favorite part of the program was the work environment. Everyone I worked with was deeply committed to their projects and responsibilities, yet the atmosphere never felt tense or overwhelming. You could genuinely see how passionate people at CHOP are about their work. Being surrounded by such motivated and supportive individ…
CHOP REU Training Testimonial - Martha Chavez-Lua - Summer 2026
CHOP Mentor(s): Akiva S. Cohen, PhD
"This summer, I joined Dr. Akiva Cohen's lab at CIRP as part of the Minds Matter Concussion Program, working on pre-clinical research into how mild traumatic brain injury affects cognition and brain circuitry. Behavioral neuroscience was a completely new world for me. I spent my first week learning paradigms like Spatial Object Recognition and contextual fear learning from scratch, and I won't lie…
CHOP REU Training Testimonial - Morgan Daily - Summer 2026
CHOP Mentor(s): Ola Kalu, PhD, EdS and Rachel Myers, PhD, MS
"Being a part of the CIRP REU program gave me the opportunity to contribute to meaningful investigations, strengthen my analytical skills, and gain confidence navigating a professional research environment. My project this summer focused on improving how doulas, mothers, clinicians, and community organizations understand and communicate the doula role. Through reviewing literature, analyzing surve…
CHOP REU Training Testimonial - Sofiya Ivanova - Summer 2026
CHOP Mentor(s): Katelin Hoskins, PhD, MBE, CRNP
"I came into the CIRP REU program unsure of whether a research career was for me. Through working on the highly interdisciplinary UPLIFT team of brilliant, passionate professionals, I discovered that research is deeply collaborative and creative. Furthermore, being involved in an implementation-based, naturalistic study showed me that research is capable of making an immediate impact as well as a…