BHSI Laureate Candidates Gain Experiential Knowledge

This summer, laureate candidates in the Berkeley Health Sciences Institute (BHSI) have taken experiential learning to a new level under the direction of Dr. Nicole Ackerson, Chair of the Science department and Director of the BHSI. This exciting, hands-on approach to learning exposes our students to real-world experiences in the health sciences. 

The BHSI is one of three institutes that make up the Center for Advanced Experiential Learning at Berkeley. The BHSI immerses Berkeley rising seniors in a comprehensive clinical and laboratory science curriculum to increase their general science knowledge, improve their critical thinking skills with iterative learning projects, and better prepare them for the advanced coursework in medical and clinical science post-baccalaureate programs. The faculty provide students with opportunities to interact with medical professionals in the area, analyze and discuss current medical research topics, learn cutting-edge research techniques, and explore next-generation medical topics such as bioinformatics and gene editing. 

Students who complete the coursework in Principles of Organic Chemistry, advanced laboratory medicine techniques, and an experiential capstone project are awarded recognition as a Berkeley Health Sciences Institute Laureate at the end of their senior year. This summer, the students have loaded protein samples on an electrophoresis apparatus, assessed forensic injuries, and even ran a simulated COVID-19 ELISA test as part of the experiential curriculum.