91ĹÝÜ˝

91ĹÝÜ˝ Biological Sciences student Emily Lucas came to SFU with lots of curiosity about the living world and she used a variety pack of volunteer, undergraduate research and co-op experiences to help her home in on what she wanted as a career.

“It has been four years of thoroughly enjoying what I have been learning,” she says.

“I've always been interested in the smaller things like cells and bacteria and how that all works. I think how living things work and continue on is truly amazing, the story of how we've got here today and how, you know, the tree outside did too.”

She was always interested in research and got involved early with a volunteer role studying blueberry genetics in Jim Mattsson’s lab. She went on to complete an NSERC USRA with Julian Christians studying the relationship between maternal stress and offspring health and a directed study course in undergraduate research.

“Just participating research and trying to contribute towards it meant a lot to me because it's no easy feat. I have so much respect for everybody doing research on their day to day,” Lucas says.

“Your day is very much dictated by the life of a cell and how it functions and when it needs to be fed and taken care of, infected and stopping the infection. Or taking care of plants. While they are so resilient in the wild, that does not always mean they do well in our controlled environments. Or digging through hundreds of papers to get the information you want.”

Her research experiences gave her a new appreciation for the work that goes into creating scientific research and understanding, as well as science as a collaborative, team-based effort.

“I appreciate that experience,” she says, “and I wouldn't change it. But once I got into research I figured out that there are some aspects that aren't for me and I didn't know if I would enjoy doing that long term, even if the end product is super interesting.”

Lucas decided to explore her options through SFU Co-op. Her first role was working in the obesity medicine clinic, where she enjoyed working with people to make a tangible difference in their lives. From then on she was on the lookout for a role where she could help people while using her research experience.

Her next co-op job was as a forensic identification assistant with the RCMP, where she worked alongside forensic identification specialists at crime scenes across Metro Vancouver that ranged from stolen vehicles to homicide, conducting examinations of vehicles, scenes and exhibits.

“Working at the RCMP was amazing because there's all this science that I'm regularly funneling into my brain and trying to understand and implement, but I'm also helping people every day. Forensics has this beautiful fusion of everything I've been looking for.”

“It's very unlike research, where it might take a long time to collect that data and come to a conclusion. Within a couple hours I'm hoping to find tangible evidence and say here's the information that I have.”

Lucas wasn’t expecting to be able to do forensics but she wants to continue to explore it as a career. At the RCMP she found that her colleagues came from a variety of surprising backgrounds. “It was never a position that I thought was available to me,” she says. “I thought it was only for CRIM majors.”

“I highly recommend putting yourself out there for opportunities. My opportunities have been very diverse, and I've been very lucky for everything that I've gotten to do. If something comes knocking on your door, don't turn it away too quickly or shut down the idea of it, because sometimes things just find you.”