I tend to be reserved when using superlatives, and I try to not use them unless I absolutely mean it. Yet, here’s one: EPFL’s Excellence Research Internship Program (ERIP) made the summer of 2025 the best one so far.
From Bioinspired Materials 2025
As a sophomore at The Johns Hopkins University, when the question of what I would be doing over the summer first popped up, it seemed like I wanted the impossible. How can I explore the unknown while finding comfort in what’s familiar? How can I have an enrichening summer experience while traveling to new countries and cities? How can I prepare to pursue a doctoral degree while gaining an internship experience? On top of all of these, how can I eat good, practice a language, find new friends, learn to be an adult… How can you squeeze all of this into a single summer? Turns out, ERIP made it possible.
My journey started in Geneva Airport, where I bumped into a Hopkins alum who was in Switzerland for the seventy-eighth World Health Assembly (how cool is that?) and experienced Europe’s densest rail network for the first time to go to Lausanne. I must have loved the latter so much that me and my boyfriend (who was also accepted to ERIP – we were lucky, I know!) found ourselves in a train to go to a different city every week: Bern, Zürich, Lucerne, Neuchâtel, Gruyères…
I couldn’t have been luckier when it comes to which lab I joined over the summer: Laboratory of Macromolecular and Organic Materials (LMOM). I met Prof. Holger Frauenrath and Dr. Daniel Görl on a Zoom call following my acceptance to the program. I remember how nervous I was when telling them about my past research experience: What if it wasn’t enough? All my fears disappeared when I witnessed them grow fascinated by how much I achieved as a college undergrad. I admitted that I didn’t have much prior experience in polymer science, to which they responded, “That’s great – then, you will learn a lot this summer!”.
I spent my days in lab synthesizing different variations of 1,3,5-benzenetricarboxamide (BTA), a small molecule my lab investigated to enhance the crystallization and mechanical properties of biodegradable polymers. In an independent yet supervised setting, I investigated BTA columnar structures and their blends with poly-L-lactic acid, a biocompatible polymer with poor crystallization. While doing so, I performed hands-on organic synthesis, utilized characterization technologies and found myself pondering about the behavior of BTAs’ crystal structures, where I was introduced to an essential concept that provides insights into the packing of crystallized molecules: geometric frustration.
Throughout the time I spent in lab, I observed myself grow as a researcher, presenter and colleague. On top of the presentation I made to my lab at the end of my internship, I even participated in an international conference called Bioinspired Materials and represented LMOM by sharing my work with researchers through poster sessions.
At EPFL and in Switzerland, I felt so welcome, supported and appreciated. Whether it was when we were socializing at the EPFL Summer Interns barbecue at Plage de Vidy, struggling to crystallize a BTA molecule with my mentor or having a casual date night with my significant other at Ouchy, I knew how lucky I was to have a summer like this. I can’t wait for my path to cross with EPFL again in the future.
With Dr. Daniel Görl, who came all the way to campus on a Saturday to hand me my certificate and take this photo to make it official
With my family
Buse, Johns Hopkins University, Host: Laboratory of Macromolecular and Organic Materials (LMOM)