FOS 402 Undergraduate Research Internship

280 Laboratory hours, 3 Credits

This course is an alternative to the FOS 401 Forensic Science Laboratory Internship for those students interested in participating in Faculty-mentored research. It is also available to TOX and CMB majors. Specially designed for students with an interest in post-graduate study, this course requires that students commit at least 280 hours to participate in a Faculty-mentored research project during the term they are enrolled in the course. Students will be introduced to all aspects of scientific research, including hypothesis formulation, literature searching, laboratory analytical procedures, statistical interpretation of data, and scientific paper writing. Arrangements for undergraduate research internships must be made with individual Faculty members within the Department of Sciences in consultation with the course coordinator. *

A list of Full-Time Faculty members (tenure-track professors and lecturers) that can serve as Mentors for FOS 402 can be found here. 

The deadline to enroll in FOS 402 each term coincides with the deadline to enroll in Independent Studies/Internship courses and can be found in the John Jay Academic Calendar for each respective term.

*The course description above was adapted from the 2022-23 Undergraduate Bulletin. To find FOS 402 descriptions from other years, please visit the JJC SmartCatalog here.

Prerequisites

ENG 201; senior standing (>90 credits); majoring in Cell and Molecular Biology or Forensic Science or Toxicology; and permission of the Faculty mentor and the course coordinator (details below).

Getting Started

  1. Identify Faculty members of lecturers who are members of the Department of Science and whose research interests or fields of study are related to yours by going to their web pages, asking your peers or classmates, and asking your professors or instructors.
  2. Use Google Scholar, Pubmed, or any of the resources in the John Jay Library to review their latest publications to see what projects they have worked on during the last few years. It is very likely that if the project has been published it was completed already, but it is also likely that there are ongoing projects related to it going on in their lab at the moment. Reading about their past work might inspire you to ask a question about their work that they have not considered yet, which could lead to your own independent project.
  3. Meet with potential Faculty mentors to discuss your research interest. Be prepared to answer why are you interested in their work and to ask questions about their current work and ongoing projects you might be able to join. Ask about what are their expectations of a FOS 402 mentee and about their availability to serve as your Faculty mentor for FOS 402. 
  4. Most Faculty mentors do not expect you to come up with an independent project or idea for your research. Some Faculty mentors have ongoing projects, so you will be assigned to one of them. Some Faculty mentors are experts on a technique or method and want you to bring in a variable to study using their approaches. Some Faculty mentors work out of casework and appreciate it when you come in with a fully-fledged idea for a project (as long as it is feasible, testable, and original).

 

Enrolling in FOS 402

The process begins once you have selected a Faculty mentor. Meet with them to fill out the FOS 402 application, and they will submit it on your behalf to get you enrolled. You can find the FOS 402 application here and a list of Full-Time Faculty members that can serve as Mentors for FOS 402 can be found here. At the end of this page, there is a non-comprehensive list of Faculty members that provided information about their expectations of students who enroll in FOS 402 with them.

  • Students and Faculty mentors should plan to complete the required 280 hours during the term they enroll in FOS 402.
  • Availability of Science Faculty members to serve as FOS 402 Mentors is determined by the Faculty member.
  • The FOS 402 application must be filled out by the Faculty Mentor in consultation with the student wishing to enroll in FOS 402 Research Internship.

 

Once the application has been filled by the student and Faculty Mentor, the form should be e-mailed by the Faculty Mentor to the FOS 402 Coordinator (fos402@jjay.cuny.edu), and the email should include the student’s John Jay e-mail address in the CC line in lieu of signatures. After submission and approval, the FOS 402 Coordinator will enroll you in the course (it should appear in your CUNYFirst account within 1-2 weeks of initial submission).

 

Contact info:

fos402@jjay.cuny.edu

List of Faculty in the Department of Sciences that can serve as FOS 402 Faculty Mentors

A comprehensive list put together and maintained by the Department, of full-time Faculty Members and full-time Lecturers can be found here. Each of their names serves as a link to their Faculty profile, which contains information provided by them about their research projects, ways to contact them, and other information.

Information Provided by Faculty Mentors about their expectations for FOS 402 students

Ana Pego, PhD

  • In addition to the Research Interests/Area of Expertise listed in your Faculty directory page, would you like to list any other projects/interests you would like students to be aware of?
    • Hair analysis; method development for detection of drugs
  • Do you require that students interested in doing their FOS402 capstone with you take any specific courses?  
    • Necessary: CHE 103, CHE 104, CHE 201, CHE 202, CHE 220. Optimal: those + CHE 320 and CHE 321
  • During which periods during the academic year are you most years available to take FOS 402 students?  
    • Fall
    • Spring
  • In addition to the basic requirements of the course (Literature Review, Lab Notebook & Final Report/Paper, or Presentation) are there other assignments you require that FOS 402 students complete during the internship period?
    • No
  • Do students have the option to join or continue in your lab before or after completion of the 280 hours for FOS 402?
    • Yes
  • Students who join your lab for FOS 402...  
    • can join an existing and ongoing project in my lab
    • can develop a project based on their shared interests with me
  • Type of research experience  
    • Bench-based
    • Literature-based
    • Field work-based (work outside of campus)
  • Anything else you want potential FOS 402 students to know about you, your lab, and your teaching strategies/mentorship philosophy?
    • In my laboratory every student is welcome! Evert student I have worked with so far has enjoyed the experience. I am very easygoing and I love teaching new skills to students. I do require a lot of communication! I believe the most important thing to having different projects with different people at the same time is communication, both with me and with my respective colleagues. Additionally, students are required to show responsibility and humility. We are an analytical lab and mistakes are part of life; since we must be able to trace back mistakes I am looking for students with the maturity to own up to their mistakes, who are honest and humble enough to understand we all have something to learn every single day.  Science evolves and so should we. Apart from that, I do hope and would like students to have fun and enjoy their experience at the toxicology lab! :) Ps. If you're willing to help me build a new TikTok page for the lab, even better! All ideas are welcome!

 

Anthony Carpi, PhD

  • In addition to the Research Interests/Area of Expertise listed in your Faculty directory page, would you like to list any other projects/interests you would like students to be aware of?
    • N/A
  • Do you require that students interested in doing their FOS402 capstone with you take any specific courses?  
    • Require that they have worked with me in the prior semester.
  • During which periods during the academic year are you most years available to take FOS 402 students?  
    • Any time of the academic year depending on my schedule
  • In addition to the basic requirements of the course (Literature Review, Lab Notebook & Final Report/Paper, or Presentation) are there other assignments you require that FOS 402 students complete during the internship period?
    • Lab group meetings, individual lab work.
  • Do students have the option to join or continue in your lab before or after completion of the 280 hours for FOS 402?
    • Yes
  • Students who join your lab for FOS 402...  
    • can join an existing and ongoing project in my lab
    • can develop a project based on their shared interests with me
  • Type of research experience  
    • Bench-based
  • Anything else you want potential FOS 402 students to know about you, your lab, and your teaching strategies/mentorship philosophy?
    • Active participation, independent-minded, and long-term commitment to lab/research are expected.

 

Elise Champeil, PhD

  • In addition to the Research Interests/Area of Expertise listed in your Faculty directory page, would you like to list any other projects/interests you would like students to be aware of?
    • N/A
  • Do you require that students interested in doing their FOS402 capstone with you take any specific courses?  
    • CHE 202, Mobio (recommended)
  • During which periods during the academic year are you most years available to take FOS 402 students?  
    • Any time of the academic year depending on my schedule
  • In addition to the basic requirements of the course (Literature Review, Lab Notebook & Final Report/Paper, or Presentation) are there other assignments you require that FOS 402 students complete during the internship period?
    • N/A
  • Do students have the option to join or continue in your lab before or after completion of the 280 hours for FOS 402?
    • Yes
  • Students who join your lab for FOS 402...  
    • can join an existing and ongoing project in my lab
    • can develop a project based on their shared interests with me
  • Type of research experience  
    • Bench-based
  • Anything else you want potential FOS 402 students to know about you, your lab, and your teaching strategies/mentorship philosophy?
    • N/A

 

Gloria Proni, PhD

  • In addition to the Research Interests/Area of Expertise listed in your Faculty directory page, would you like to list any other projects/interests you would like students to be aware of?
    • N/A
  • Do you require that students interested in doing their FOS402 capstone with you take any specific courses?  
    • N/A
  • During which periods during the academic year are you most years available to take FOS 402 students?  
    • Fall
    • Spring
  • In addition to the basic requirements of the course (Literature Review, Lab Notebook & Final Report/Paper, or Presentation) are there other assignments you require that FOS 402 students complete during the internship period?
    • N/A
  • Do students have the option to join or continue in your lab before or after completion of the 280 hours for FOS 402?
    • Yes
  • Students who join your lab for FOS 402...  
    • can join an existing and ongoing project in my lab
    • can develop a project based on their shared interests with me
  • Type of research experience  
    • Bench-based
    • Literature-based
  • Anything else you want potential FOS 402 students to know about you, your lab, and your teaching strategies/mentorship philosophy?
    • N/A

 

Guoqi Zhang, PhD

  • In addition to the Research Interests/Area of Expertise listed in your Faculty directory page, would you like to list any other projects/interests you would like students to be aware of?
    • New drug research and development with metal-organic molecular design.
  • Do you require that students interested in doing their FOS402 capstone with you take any specific courses?  
    • No
  • During which periods during the academic year are you most years available to take FOS 402 students?  
    • Fall
    • Spring
    • Summer (8-week)
    • Any time of the academic year depending on my schedule
  • In addition to the basic requirements of the course (Literature Review, Lab Notebook & Final Report/Paper, or Presentation) are there other assignments you require that FOS 402 students complete during the internship period?
    • No
  • Do students have the option to join or continue in your lab before or after completion of the 280 hours for FOS 402?
    • Yes
  • Students who join your lab for FOS 402...  
    • can join an existing and ongoing project in my lab
    • can develop a project based on their shared interests with me
  • Type of research experience  
    • Bench-based
    • Literature-based
  • Anything else you want potential FOS 402 students to know about you, your lab, and your teaching strategies/mentorship philosophy?
    • We are excited about any new observation of chemistry. We are open to all students who are interested in chemical science at all levels.

 

Jason Rauceo, PhD

  • In addition to the Research Interests/Area of Expertise listed in your Faculty directory page, would you like to list any other projects/interests you would like students to be aware of?
    • No
  • Do you require that students interested in doing their FOS402 capstone with you take any specific courses?  
    • No
  • During which periods during the academic year are you most years available to take FOS 402 students?  
    • Any time of the academic year depending on my schedule
  • In addition to the basic requirements of the course (Literature Review, Lab Notebook & Final Report/Paper, or Presentation) are there other assignments you require that FOS 402 students complete during the internship period?
    • No
  • Do students have the option to join or continue in your lab before or after completion of the 280 hours for FOS 402?
    • Yes
  • Students who join your lab for FOS 402...  
    • can join an existing and ongoing project in my lab
    • can develop a project based on their shared interests with me
  • Type of research experience  
    • Bench-based
    • Literature-based
  • Anything else you want potential FOS 402 students to know about you, your lab, and your teaching strategies/mentorship philosophy?
    • No

 

Jennifer Rosati, PhD

  • In addition to the Research Interests/Area of Expertise listed in your Faculty directory page, would you like to list any other projects/interests you would like students to be aware of?
    • No
  • Do you require that students interested in doing their FOS402 capstone with you take any specific courses?  
    • No, the general core courses required for their program are sufficient.
  • During which periods during the academic year are you most years available to take FOS 402 students?  
    • Any time of the academic year depending on my schedule
  • In addition to the basic requirements of the course (Literature Review, Lab Notebook & Final Report/Paper, or Presentation) are there other assignments you require that FOS 402 students complete during the internship period?
    • General assistance in the lab, colony rearing.
  • Do students have the option to join or continue in your lab before or after completion of the 280 hours for FOS 402?
    • Yes
  • Students who join your lab for FOS 402...  
    • can join an existing and ongoing project in my lab
    • can develop a project based on their shared interests with me
  • Type of research experience  
    • Bench-based
    • Literature-based
    • Field work-based (work outside of campus)
  • Anything else you want potential FOS 402 students to know about you, your lab, and your teaching strategies/mentorship philosophy?
    • N/A

 

Lissette Delgado-Cruzata, PhD

  • In addition to the Research Interests/Area of Expertise listed in your Faculty directory page, would you like to list any other projects/interests you would like students to be aware of?
    • Epigenetics of chronic diseases including the study of DNA methylation and miRNA level changes in samples from breast cancer tissue from women diagnosed with the disease and circulating tissue from rheumatoid arthritis patients. We also study these measures in cell culture systems to learn about the biological mechanisms related to epigenetic regulation. We also study epigenetic measures to investigate differences between monozygotic twins in forensics.  
  • Do you require that students interested in doing their FOS402 capstone with you take any specific courses?  
    • No
  • During which periods during the academic year are you most years available to take FOS 402 students?  
    • Fall
    • Spring
    • Summer (8-week)
  • In addition to the basic requirements of the course (Literature Review, Lab Notebook & Final Report/Paper, or Presentation) are there other assignments you require that FOS 402 students complete during the internship period?
    • Attending group meetings, and presenting/discussing research articles
  • Do students have the option to join or continue in your lab before or after completion of the 280 hours for FOS 402?
    • Yes
  • Students who join your lab for FOS 402...  
    • can join an existing and ongoing project in my lab
    • can develop a project based on their shared interests with me
  • Type of research experience  
    • Bench-based
    • Literature-based
  • Anything else you want potential FOS 402 students to know about you, your lab, and your teaching strategies/mentorship philosophy?
    • N/A

 

Marta Concheiro-Guisan, PhD

  • In addition to the Research Interests/Area of Expertise listed in your Faculty directory page, would you like to list any other projects/interests you would like students to be aware of?
    • N/A
  • Do you require that students interested in doing their FOS402 capstone with you take any specific courses?  
    • I prefer that the student is doing the Tox track in Forensic Science Major, or is in the Tox Major.
  • During which periods during the academic year are you most years available to take FOS 402 students?  
    • Any time of the academic year depending on my schedule
  • In addition to the basic requirements of the course (Literature Review, Lab Notebook & Final Report/Paper, or Presentation) are there other assignments you require that FOS 402 students complete during the internship period?
    • No
  • Do students have the option to join or continue in your lab before or after completion of the 280 hours for FOS 402?
    • No, unless the student is part of PRISM’s Undergraduate Research Program
  • Students who join your lab for FOS 402...  
    • can join an existing and ongoing project in my lab
  • Type of research experience  
    • Bench-based
    • Literature-based
  • Anything else you want potential FOS 402 students to know about you, your lab, your teaching strategies/mentorship philosophy?
    • N/A

 

Mechthild Prinz, PhD

  • In addition to the Research Interests/Area of Expertise listed in your Faculty directory page, would you like to list any other projects/interests you would like students to be aware of?
    • Trace DNA recovery optimization; integration of DNA and protein identification
  • Do you require that students interested in doing their FOS402 capstone with you take any specific courses?  
    • BIO315 pre-req, BIO412 co-req, BIO413 - co-req
  • During which periods during the academic year are you most years available to take FOS 402 students?  
    • Any time of the academic year depending on my schedule
  • In addition to the basic requirements of the course (Literature Review, Lab Notebook & Final Report/Paper, or Presentation) are there other assignments you require that FOS 402 students complete during the internship period?
    • No
  • Do students have the option to join or continue in your lab before or after completion of the 280 hours for FOS 402?
    • Yes
  • Students who join your lab for FOS 402...  
    • can join an existing and ongoing project in my lab
    • can develop a project based on their shared interests with me
  • Type of research experience  
    • Bench-based
  • Anything else you want potential FOS 402 students to know about you, your lab, and your teaching strategies/mentorship philosophy?
    • N/A

 

Nathan Lents, PhD

  • In addition to the Research Interests/Area of Expertise listed in your Faculty directory page, would you like to list any other projects/interests you would like students to be aware of?
    • N/A
  • Do you require that students interested in doing their FOS402 capstone with you take any specific courses?  
    • Genetics (Bio315)
  • During which periods during the academic year are you most years available to take FOS 402 students?  
    • Any time of the academic year depending on my schedule
  • In addition to the basic requirements of the course (Literature Review, Lab Notebook & Final Report/Paper, or Presentation) are there other assignments you require that FOS 402 students complete during the internship period?
    • No
  • Do students have the option to join or continue in your lab before or after completion of the 280 hours for FOS 402?
    • Yes
  • Students who join your lab for FOS 402...  
    • can join an existing and ongoing project in my lab
    • can develop a project based on their shared interests with me
  • Type of research experience  
    • Literature-based
    • Computational, theoretical
  • Anything else you want potential FOS 402 students to know about you, your lab, and your teaching strategies/mentorship philosophy?
    • Students must be self-motivated.

 

Peter Diaczuk, PhD

  • In addition to the Research Interests/Area of Expertise listed in your Faculty directory page, would you like to list any other projects/interests you would like students to be aware of?
    • Ballistics, trace evidence, microscopy
  • Do you require that students interested in doing their FOS402 capstone with you take any specific courses?  
    • Pre: Gen chem / Co: organic chem & physics
  • During which periods during the academic year are you most years available to take FOS 402 students?  
    • Any time of the academic year depending on my schedule
  • In addition to the basic requirements of the course (Literature Review, Lab Notebook & Final Report/Paper, or Presentation) are there other assignments you require that FOS 402 students complete during the internship period?
    • Always the above, but depending on the project, could be additional requirements
  • Do students have the option to join or continue in your lab before or after completion of the 280 hours for FOS 402?
    • Yes
  • Students who join your lab for FOS 402...  
    • can join an existing and ongoing project in my lab
    • can develop a project based on their shared interests with me
  • Type of research experience  
    • Field work-based (work outside of campus)
  • Anything else you want potential FOS 402 students to know about you, your lab, and your teaching strategies/mentorship philosophy?

 

Shu-Yuan Cheng, PhD

  • In addition to the Research Interests/Area of Expertise listed in your Faculty directory page, would you like to list any other projects/interests you would like students to be aware of?
    • None
  • Do you require that students interested in doing their FOS402 capstone with you take any specific courses?  
    • Pre-requisites: CHE202
  • During which periods during the academic year are you most years available to take FOS 402 students?  
    • Any time of the academic year depending on my schedule
  • In addition to the basic requirements of the course (Literature Review, Lab Notebook & Final Report/Paper, or Presentation) are there other assignments you require that FOS 402 students complete during the internship period?
    • No
  • Do students have the option to join or continue in your lab before or after completion of the 280 hours for FOS 402?
    • Yes
  • Students who join your lab for FOS 402...  
    • can join an existing and ongoing project in my lab
    • can develop a project based on their shared interests with me
  • Type of research experience  
    • Bench-based
  • Anything else you want potential FOS 402 students to know about you, your lab, and your teaching strategies/mentorship philosophy?
    • None

 

Yi He, PhD

  • In addition to the Research Interests/Area of Expertise listed in your Faculty directory page, would you like to list any other projects/interests you would like students to be aware of?
    • N/A
  • Do you require that students interested in doing their FOS402 capstone with you take any specific courses?  
    • Instrumental Analysis
  • During which periods during the academic year are you most years available to take FOS 402 students?  
    • Spring
  • In addition to the basic requirements of the course (Literature Review, Lab Notebook & Final Report/Paper, or Presentation) are there other assignments you require that FOS 402 students complete during the internship period?
    • No
  • Do students have the option to join or continue in your lab before or after completion of the 280 hours for FOS 402?
    • Yes
  • Students who join your lab for FOS 402...  
    • can join an existing and ongoing project in my lab
    • can develop a project based on their shared interests with me
  • Type of research experience  
    • Literature-based
  • Anything else you want potential FOS 402 students to know about you, your lab, and your teaching strategies/mentorship philosophy?