Charlene Tran was recently announced as one of six UCI students to be awarded the Institute for International Education’s Generation Study Abroad STEAM Scholarships, and the only student from the School of Biological Sciences. As an undergraduate student, Charlene will be studying and conducting research at Osaka University as part of its Summer Lab Research, Engineering & Science program. The program is designed for students seeking a summer STEM research experience to work in a group lab setting and contribute to projects at the university.

Upon her return to UCI, Charlene will promote study abroad to fellow School of Biological Sciences majors by creating a blog and attending orientations and workshops where she will highlight her experience and show biology majors what they can achieve from studying abroad and still graduate within four years.

Charlene is already highly involved in research on-campus and this program will allow her to expand on those skills and knowledge in an international arena.  She hopes to build connections with Japanese faculty that will support her in her future career.  Charlene is a novice traveler and is looking forward to the opportunity to immerse herself in a different culture while studying and conducting research at a top institution in Japan. The program fits her major and undergraduate degree perfectly and with plans to pursue graduate school, the research experience will help her tremendously in achieving her professional goals.