ISHITA

Highschool Research Superstar

As an almost-16-year-old, Ishita has already logged more than 800 hours of laboratory research work. Her excellence in the lab has allowed her to enter (and win) research competitions, win money, and even an invite to present at Harvard university.
In the interviews below, she discusses how she was able to succeed in the lab, and what other ambitious teens should be doing as well.

Recently she expanded her efforts to create a STEM camp for middle school girls, where she teaches the process to begin and execute research in a real lab, as well as best practices.
Her camps have already garnered media attention, and she discusses her plans to continue making a meaningful impact throughout the rest of her high school years.

Listen to her FULL interview below!

Ishita's Research Achievements

BEST Medicine

a competition hosted by Cleveland State University in which Ishita presented her research and won 1st place in her section (Health/Medicine) and the top overall award in the entire competition. This included a cash prize of $3000 that could be used to cover the cost to travel to any conference of her choosing.

SEO/YES Program

A research internship held by Case Western Reserve University. Through this program, she got a stipend for the summer while being able to attend seminars given by decorated researchers. As a culmination of her summer work, the program hosted a poster session along with the requirement of writing a scientific manuscript.

She won the Mark Smith award for best poster at the end of the program and was also given a raise in her stipend for working overtime. The Mark Smith award was given in honor of a past professor who studied Alzeimer’s disease and passed away in 2010.

Presented at Harvard University

Ishita was invited to present at a Research conference hosted by Harvard for high schoolers interested in research. She spoke about her research which included a presentation followed by a Q&A session. She helped the participants learn more about how to become a successful laboratory researcher. She answered questions about her own lab experience, research, and how they can get started.