Laboratory Assistant for Virginia Tech Sensory Evaluation Lab Blacksburg, VA March 2015 - Present
During my senior year, I was given the opportunity to become a sensory lab assistant after volunteering for the Virginia Tech Sensory Evaluation Lab the previous semester. I was very excited for this opportunity as it brings me one step closer to my dream of entering graduate school. Before starting my official position, I completed multiple in-lab training sessions including OSHA Lab Standards, Health and Safety Policy, Chemical Hygiene Plan, laboratory specific SOPs, Autoclave Use and Verification, Fire Extinguisher Safety, and Compressed Gas Cylinder Safety. As a sensory lab assistant, I assisted with research such as a study on how outer packaging affects the perceived taste of milk. Other sensory research I assisted with involved spices, hummus and apple cider. My responsibilities included setting up, preparing samples, and performing the tests. On a daily basis, I engaged with principal researchers, technical staff, and graduate students, in the process learning many concepts and theories I had never seen or known before. Outside of the lab, I worked with public and industry clients by recruiting, greeting, and facilitating sensory participant experiences. From this experience, I learned how to work closely with research staff, but also how to function independently in the laboratory setting. This experience helped prepare me for future laboratory research and graduate coursework.