The biology major is in New York working in the lab of Dr. Jennifer Punt (BMC '83) and Dr. Stephen Emerson '74 at Columbia University Medical Center.
Growing up with a father who is a physician-turned-full-time-researcher, Keisuke Sawada '17 comes by his interest in biology and medical research naturally.
But the biology major's mild interest has turned into a full-blown passion after taking classes and working in labs at Haverford. And this summer, with the sponsorship of the KINSC, Sawada is interning at the lab of Dr. Jennifer Punt (BMC '83) and Dr. Stephen Emerson's '74 at Columbia University Medical Center. (The alumni researchers are both former Haverford professors, and Emerson was also president of the College until 2011.)
Sawada's favorite part of his biology research is analyzing data with other lab members. "I'm always awed at how many interpretations and [how much] different information you can achieve from one set of data, depending on the person doing the analysis, and these moments are when I feel most excited towards research," he says.
The summer before his freshman year at Haverford, Sawada worked in his father's lab. And that first-hand exposure to research inspired him to pursue this path. "I was instantly hooked," he says.
Though he's enjoying the life of a researcher this summer, Sawada is also considering following in the footsteps of his father by applying for a M.D. or Ph.D after college.
—Hina Fathima '15
"Summer Centered" is a series exploring our students' Center-funded summer work.
