(May 24, 2013) — Senior projects give students ample opportunity to explore interests and to become more involved in their community. Students also get to meet new people and learn new skills. For someone who has always been interested in medicine, Chris Atmajian’s senior project gave him an introduction into an industry he was highly interested in.

Atmajian’s senior project required him to write a research paper on the progress of stem cell research, as well as volunteer at Glendale Memorial Hospital. Atmajian said his favorite part of his senior project was his fieldwork, because he met many people who helped him throughout the process of his project. “My volunteer coordinator helped me out a lot. She taught me how to do a couple things,” he said. “Mrs. Newcomer was also a great help, with completing the paper, completing the final product and doing the fieldwork.”

“Chris’s project was a good example of how students can effectively combine an appropriate research paper topic with related fieldwork activities under an overall theme such as the medical field,” said librarian Susan Newcomer.

While volunteering for Glendale Memorial Hospital, Atmajian learned various skills, including how to administer CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation). “My mentor taught me how to do CPR, and my final product was a CPR demonstration,” Atmajian said.

Atmajian said that his initial interest in medicine is what inspired him to form his senior project around medicine. He wants to pursue a career in medical field in the future.

Looking back at his experiences, Atmajian said that he had a lot of fun with his senior project, and really enjoyed the experience. “I was expecting it to be a little more difficult, but it was a lot easier than I expected,” Atmajian said. “I just started, and it ended really well.”