When I started DIY Diagnostics, I was really worried I would be the only clueless person in the room and that I would fall behind or never see progress. Thankfully, I can say that my actual experience was the exact opposite. DIY is full of mentors and peers that are willing to help you with anything and work to ensure that you actually know what you are doing in lab rather than follow meaningless words. Dr. Riedel is extremely understanding, fun, and really works with you to make sure you are getting the most out of your research experience!
One thing that makes the DIY experience unique is the variety of skills and techniques you learn. I do not think there is another stream where you learn to field sample, extract DNA, conduct PCR, code and make apps, and 3D print. The ability to learn so many different things allowed me to find what I was specifically interested in and base my independent project on that. This also means that DIY provides a great opportunity to build your lab repertoire, which makes you more qualified to go into a variety of research in future labs and enhances your resume!
Another unique thing about DIY that really sets it apart from all the other streams is that it allows you to pursue an independent project of interest in the second semester. Instead of an RE assigning you to a group and project, you, as the researcher, are able to choose your own topic for your project. From the perspective of a freshman wanting to pursue a stream that will bring them closer to their post-graduation goals, DIY and the structure of the independent research project provides a greater opportunity for being published, which I believe stems from being able to work on a project chosen not by your RE but by you.
The research and projects that DIY focuses on are also distinct compared to other streams. In DIY, research and projects has the ability to have a global impact and change people’s lives for the better through the creation of diagnostic tests. Being able to understand that your individual research can be used so directly for the greater good of the global community is something so special to DIY and cannot be found anywhere else in FRI.