Bridget is a descendent of the original people of Trowernna (Tasmania) and a proud member of the Lia Pootah Aboriginal Community.

Coming from a small school on the outskirts of Melbourne, and being the first in her family to attend university, she says CareerTrackers has provided a fantastic opportunity to learn about careers in medical research.

“My eyes have been opened to what I can achieve during my degree and I feel so determined to do the best that I can.

"I’m so grateful to have this amazing opportunity and I now know that research is definitely something I want to pursue in the future,” she said.

Bridget’s internship has been with Dr Rebecca Feltham’s laboratory, looking at how cells degrade cancer-related proteins via a process called ubiquitination.

WEHI’s friendly and supportive culture is Bridget’s favourite aspect of working here.

“It’s so different to studying at university, and I really value collaborating with others, sharing new ideas and learning about everyone’s work,” she said.

“It’s exciting to get good results, and I’m humbled to think my work potentially even lead to new treatments for cancers such as leukaemia."

CareerTrackers is a national non-profit organisation that creates internship opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander university students. WEHI has been hosting CareerTrackers students since 2014.