University of South Carolina
Claire L. Chabot, B.Sc
Bio
I am a Canadian-American undergraduate student studying Biochemistry and Molecular Biology with a minor in French at the University of South Carolina Honors College and I am completing my GLD in Research. My focus is pre-medical and I enjoy doing Undergraduate Research in Dr. Pittman's lab in the South Carolina School of Pharmacy focusing on the ovarian cancer susceptibility gene RAD51D. My interests lie in global health and I hope to one-day work as a physician with Doctors Without Borders.
Many undergraduates who consider themselves pre-medicine attempt to conduct research in college. My experience was no different except that when I first entered Dr. Pittman’s research laboratory I was a pre-pharmacy student. Research was not something I believed I would become passionate about during my undergraduate career. I didn’t realize that once I stepped into Dr. Pittman’s laboratory that my focus and career goals were going to change drastically within the coming months. One adjustment I have had to make as an undergraduate research was to transition from not having professional research experience to creating my own research projects, developing new techniques, and understanding laboratory papers published in the field. This, however, coincided with the relevant coursework of my Biochemistry Major as well as the training provided by Dr. Pittman and Dr. Nicole Reilly. To translate this work, and its importance to the future of healthcare, into layman’s terms for those without a scientific background was a huge hurdle for me to overcome.
My hope is that my creativity will live on in my future work; I want to be able to incorporate different forms of communication into my practice so that one day I might be able to discuss effective treatment with one patient or help implement different programs of medical education the next. I believe that what I have learned through my research can also be applied to the international work that I wish to do in the future with Doctors Without Borders. Not only does this organization provide care for patients in war-torn areas or in places devastated by natural disasters, they also attempt to create a long-lasting impact in the community so that the medical programs they helped to support will survive long after they are gone. Self-sustaining medical systems are derived from proper education and not everyone learns the same way. Through my own innovative abilities I my goal would be to not only help treat patients abroad but also participate in the creation of these long-standing healthcare programs as well.
The way I see it, a project cannot be a considered a success until it can survive on its own without its creator. I have full confidence in the artwork, and the work I have created around it, that even if I was not present, the main themes of cross-disciplinary education would be evident; those who have experienced cancer, worked to fight against cancer, or the casual viewer would all be able to observe the beauty in science. This type of longevity in my work is something I hope to carry on with me throughout the rest of my career.