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I am applying to the Molecular Plant Science Doctorate program at Washington State University to continue my education and research. After four years of preparing, I am ready to take this next time and begin work on my doctorate. I can say confidently that I have the tools and the determination to excel in such a stimulating and challenging environment.

I received my Bachelor’s of Science from Washington State University in May 2017. During my undergraduate degree, I had the opportunity to do a summer internship in a research lab under the instructions of Dr. Andrei Smertenko, Ph.D. During the internship, I learned of the sizable amount of work those goes into a research project and ultimately a paper. I spent time researching the …show more content…

One of those reasons is that I am interested in continuing developing cellular phenotyping technique using peroxisome abundance for drought tolerance. I have a unique situation where I can collaborate within multiple departments at WSU to fully understand how abiotic stresses affect the plant on molecular and cellular levels. During the last year, I have been working as a research intern for Dr. Andrei Smertenko, Ph.D., to understand and correlate multiple plant responses to drought with the peroxisomes response. I am working with phenomics and chlorophyll fluorescence to understand the photosynthetic tolerance responses and on a project where images of roots are analyzed to understand root architecture in response to drought. The more time I spend researching, the more I understand the complexity of plants and plant responses.

Washington State University provided me a home and a place to push myself over the last four years. My BS in integrated plants sciences focused on the breeding, farming, and agriculture while also highlighting genetic and molecular biology. During my undergraduate degree, many of my upper level biology classes focused on animal and human biology with little mention of plants. I wanted to have the opportunity to take more plant focused upper-level classes and I know that pursing a Doctorate degree at WSU would give me the opportunity to take these classes and

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