Co-op takes student to France
Alizee Fieffe-Bedard is spending her first co-op work term in France.
A previous supervisor had told Alizee to step out of her comfort zone. The third-year Molecular Biology and Genetics student decided the best way to do this was to join a lab in a different country.
Alizee has family ties in Paris so France became the natural choice. It was a chance to reconnect with her roots. Her family owns a studio apartment in the same building where they live in the 16th arrondissement. Alizee splits her time between the studio and going to the top floor to enjoy dinner with her grandparents. It’s a bonus that her family’s apartment has a view of the Eiffel Tower.
In between her research responsibilities at the Centre de Recherche sur L’inflammation, she spends time exploring the city, visiting museums with her grandmother, and working on her French. Despite French being her first language, she’s dedicated to sharpening her vocabulary.
Alizee works in the Gilgenkrantz and Lotersztajn Lab where she’s learning about the body’s inflammation response during chronic liver disease, with a specific focus on liver fibrosis. She’s also taken on a project examining the viability of RNA isolation from paraffin liver samples, conducting RT-PCR to analyze key fibrogenic genes. In her downtime, Alizee reads research papers, attends seminars, and learns new techniques. She hopes that her experience in the lab will prepare her for graduate studies.
Alizee wants to pursue graduate studies at the Centre de Recherche du Centre Hospitalier de L’université de Montréal (CRCHUM) where she’s already completed two internships. Her experience working in the lab has confirmed her interest in infectious diseases, and the CRCHUM has many labs studying various diseases such as HIV and Covid-19, along with immunopathology, which is of special interest to Alizee.
When she’s completed graduate studies, Alizee hopes to stay in academia and pursue postdoctoral positions before finding a permanent position at an institution or university.
“Living in a different country broadens your perspective on life. I’ve discovered so much about my own capabilities.” For any students considering stepping out of their comfort zone for a co-op experience, Alizee’s advice is simple: just go for it.
Co-op
