Adam Hand at UQ's AIBN

Mr Hand crossed the country and spent Christmas away from his family to learn about bioengineering at the Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology at The University of Queensland.

During his break from undergraduate engineering studies at Edith Cowan University, the 23-year-old from Tuart Hill spent 12 weeks at the AIBN as part of a Summer Research Scholarship Program.

Mr Hand spent the time in the lab of AIBN Professor Mark Kendall to learn about the Nanopatch, a needle-free vaccination device with thousands of small projections designed to deliver vaccine to immune cells in the skin.

In only 12 weeks I believe I have experienced more and learnt more than I could have ever hoped to learn in a classroom, he said.

The program has opened my eyes to a completely different and fascinating field that I would have never imagined entering when originally enrolling in engineering.

Mr Hand spent his time in the lab improving and automating the dry coating procedure of vaccines for use on the Nanopatch.

He admitted to being completely overwhelmed when he arrived in Brisbane, moved into a share-house and started his research project at AIBN.

When I first arrived in Brisbane I was thrust into a new city, a new house and more dauntingly this new experience of bioengineering.

You may ask: why did you throw away a summer holiday to work at AIBN?'. However, that wasn't the case. Travelling from Perth and experiencing a new life was an adventure in itself and working at the AIBN was an opportunity that I would not have missed.

Read more from the original source:
UQ Summer Research Program provides wealth of new experiences