Tag: Student

How did you first hear about OTT? I first learned about OTT when I heard about the student writing position through an email sent to Emory English majors. Although I’m a humanities major, I’ve always had an interest in the sciences, so I was curious to hear how I could use the skills I’d developed within that area. What did you expect your job would be like? How did it differ from these expectations? Going in, I think I imagined my job would be something along the lines of writing news blasts or editing announcements. I never imagined that I would actually be speaking with top researchers about their latest discoveries. That sort of opportunity isn’t typically available for undergrads. What was a typical assignment like for you? The thing I enjoyed about my work is that there really was no typical assignment. Editing, researching, writing – I really had the chance to do it all. Last year, my big project was researching for OTT’s Start-Ups section on the website – during the fall of 2014 into the spring, I worked to find and organize resources for inventors looking to commercialize their technology, finding all the resources available. This year

I heard about the opportunity to work at Emory’s Office of Technology Transfer through my Health and Science Journalism course. As a Biology and English major, I saw this as the perfect opportunity to integrate skills I had learned in both subjects, and perhaps gain new insights in the process. I was expecting a writing-intensive job that would challenge me to work in varying styles, produce content for deadlines and hone my journalism skills. What I wasn’t expecting was an unparalleled opportunity to work with leading researchers, learn about new, exciting inventions and initiatives, and gain exposure to an area of law where I now hope to launch my career. Technology transfer is an area where I saw my interests in science and writing intersect. The process of bringing an invention to market requires both adherence to strict guidelines for obtaining patents and licensing, and a bold sense of creativity for developing innovative marketing strategies. My favorite part about working for OTT was that I was constantly learning. For one piece, I researched global access policies that make medical and public health tools available in parts of the world that can’t afford high prices—a concept that was later relevant to

I began working at the Emory Office of Technology Transfer as a writing assistant during my sophomore year of college here. I was a pre-med turned journalism student, hungry for any writing opportunities I could get my hands on. Having spent the previous year taking courses in biology and organic chemistry, I was eager to take on the task of translating seemingly complex concepts into stories our readers would be interested in. The job’s intersection of science and writing was the ideal opportunity for me, someone interested in health and science journalism. I’ll be honest. When I first started the job, I wasn’t exactly sure what “technology transfer” actually meant. Through my time working in the office however, I’ve gotten to fully understand and appreciate OTT’s vital role in Emory’s standing as a leading research university. I’ve also gotten the opportunity to sit down and chat with some truly awe-inspiring, accomplished researchers and scientists about the exciting projects they’ve been working on. I wrote about Dawn Laney, a genetic counselor who wrote a series of books to help children understand genetic conditions. I covered the development of iCHOOSE Kidney, a mobile app that helps patients make decisions about treatment options