The 8 weeks have finally reached their conclusion, and we are presenting our research today. It feels as if the time has simultaneously dragged on and flown by, but we are here at the end either way. I’m relieved to be done, but also sad to leave this experience and the people I’ve met along the way.

This week was immensely stressful and exciting at the same time. I had just proposed to my now fiancé this past weekend, which was a wonderful and lovely experience, only to thrust back into research work with very little time left to finish everything. It was still fun to practice presenting our research this week and receive feedback, however, and I appreciate getting the chance to develop my presentation skills.

In the future of my professional career, I hope to be heavily involved in habitat management and restoration, especially in providing habitat for wildlife. I eventually want to become a manager and oversee the creation and implementation management plans for governmental and/or non-governmental agencies. This internship has equipped me with valuable skills to pursue this goal. Management and research are closely knit to one another in this field and understanding how research is conducted will help me make more informed management decisions when looking to research for guidance. This experience has also taught me a lot about planning, and how different the creation of a plan can be from its implementation. This experience has certainly helped me prepare for the stress associated with making plans and having them fall through or not work out.

I greatly appreciate the experiences I’ve had throughout this internship, no matter how stressful it was at any point in the 8 weeks. There have been so many moments during this time that I have felt so impossibly overwhelmed by work or that there was no way I could finish everything. Despite this, if I were given the chance to go back in time a change my decision to be a part of this internship, I would still participate in this experience all over again. I’ve gotten to spend time and become friends with so many wonderful people during my time here, and I can’t express how thankful I am for that. Our whole cohort has grown so close over the course of these 8 weeks and it’s been incredible. It was such a surreal experience to have these people I’ve grown so close help me plan a proposal to my girlfriend, and I think that sums up just how close we’ve all grown to one another.

While I am ready for this internship to be over and to rest at the end of all this, I will be sad that this incredible time is over. I’d like to thank everyone involved in this internship for doing their best and making this experience the best it could be; Megan, the faculty mentors, the graduate students, and my fellow interns. Thank you especially to my partner Alyssa who, despite not having very much research experience, was an absolute trooper and was willing to do things the hard way when our research called for it. Good luck to everyone in your future endeavors, and I wish the best for you.