Elizabeth Jia, COL & WH ’27, Princeton, NJ
This summer, I had the opportunity to be an Advanced Special Projects Intern for BrainMind, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that works to bridge the valley of death between promising neuroscience research and the application of such concepts. When neuroscience-centered technologies successfully make it out of the lab, venture capital and impact investing favor market-beating products and effectively filter out potentially impactful innovation. BrainMind’s private community brings together top scientists, entrepreneurs, investors, philanthropists, and academic institutions to accelerate impactful innovation in brain science.
The internship was kicked off with BrainMind’s NYC Special Forums in Neuromodulation/BCI/AI as well as Your Brain On Art. I was immersed among brain science investors, entrepreneurs, and scientists coming together to share ideas and jumpstart meaningful relationships. Following these week-long events that provided valuable insight into BrainMind’s work, I moved to Cambridge, MA to begin the internship. My work included identifying and facilitating connections between entrepreneur and investors within the ecosystem, internal operational work, and consulting with partner companies. Over the summer, the BrainMind interns helped to host two more events revolving around Neuroethics as well as Mind and Mortality. Through these unique initiatives, I learned how to navigate the intricacies surrounding brain science innovation.
The wide range of industries and areas covered in this internship enabled me to thoroughly explore my interest in the nexus of neuroscience and business while furthering my professional skills. This opportunity to work amongst top brain science professionals provided me with great insight through hands-on work and interaction. Furthermore, working with like-minded, driven peers in the internship has catalyzed lifelong bonds. I am incredibly grateful for this experience and will carry my learnings with me.
This is part of a series of posts by recipients of the 2024 Career Services Summer Funding Grant. We’ve asked funding recipients to reflect on their summer experiences and talk about the industries in which they spent their summer. You can read the entire series here
