Third-year NE student Wesley Walker parlayed the research he conducted during his recent co-op term at Sunnybrook Research Institute into a finalist position in the Institute’s prestigious Sunnybrook Research Prize competition.
The annual competition, which features a $10,000 prize, recognizes the exceptional research being done by undergraduate students with the intent to encourage more people to pursue biomedical research as a career option. It is open to third- and fourth-year students in the physical sciences and engineering disciplines at a Canadian university. A scientific review committee ranks the written submissions of applicants according to their demonstrated potential for excellence in research.
Wesley was one of ten finalists from across Canada who travelled to Sunnybrook in January to present to and answer questions from a panel of judges. His presentation shared the results of his research on optimizing pulse parameters for the activation of sub-micron ultrasound contrast agents. In addition to first-hand learning about academic presentations, finalists had the opportunity to showcase their own work and learn about the research being conducted by their peers at other institutions.
When the Sunnybrook Research Prize competition was initiated in 2011, University of Toronto professor Dr. Graham Wright, who held the Canada Research Chair in Imaging for Cardiovascular Therapeutics, explained that the competition reflects Sunnybrook Research Institute’s desire to encourage students to consider research as a career option. “The value of the prize reflects our commitment to building this talent pool. The funding comes from revenues generated through companies spun out from Sunnybrook research. Those spinoffs wouldn’t have been possible without the type of students recognized by the prize. Such students were central to the founding of past spinoffs and will be critical to the development of an innovation economy in Ontario and Canada.”
Congratulations to Wesley on his initiative to enter this competition and his achievement in reaching the finals.