2020 Merck Summer Internship

March 2020 was an unexpected blow for everyone. In a matter of days, I was packing a suitcase to fly out of California to South Korea without being able to say a proper goodbye to anyone. Without fully understanding what was happening in the world, I was adjusting to the “new normal” in a completely different time zone. With plans being canceled left and right, I remember bracing myself every morning when opening emails, afraid of seeing what new changes I needed to be prepared for. So imagine my relief when Merck announced that their summer internship program would be held virtually. I am grateful for Merck’s dedication and responsibility toward their interns during these tumultuous times. 

My respect towards the company grew over the next few weeks as I saw the efforts being made to ensure that we, interns and co-ops, would be able to maximize our experience despite the current circumstances. I felt personally welcomed by all parties and supported through encouragement from the scientists wanting to see young aspiring students grow and learn throughout the program. Although it was not the summer I was prepared for, Merck added a constant in my life as I found myself motivated to wake up at midnight to attend meetings and seminars despite the 16-hour time difference. This summer provided me a platform to tackle scientific projects and gain a deeper understanding of medicinal chemistry. 

I have been blessed with the opportunity to work alongside brilliant people including my mentors, Dr. Chen Cheng and Dr. Eric Rimmer. Even though I could not be on-site and working in the lab running reactions, I was supported by my mentor to make progress on my scientific project. I was able to design experiments to optimize conditions for the chlorination of arenes and heteroarenes and co-write the introduction section of the methodology paper based on this research. The interns in the South San Francisco site also took on a collaborative multimedia project to take advantage of our virtual internship and produce a series of videos to inform the public about drug discovery. 

My days were filled with hopping from meetings to seminars to networking events to literature reviews to even video editing. The year 2020 has been full of surprises, and I am appreciative of how Merck took those and changed them to produce a unique and fruitful adventure. I would like to thank all the members of the company who went above and beyond to push through challenges to make this summer possible. At the end of these 12 weeks, I can say with confidence that the Merck’s internship program made my summer worthwhile.