{"id":248,"date":"2021-11-19T00:51:53","date_gmt":"2021-11-19T05:51:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/khcblog\/?p=248"},"modified":"2021-11-19T10:42:05","modified_gmt":"2021-11-19T15:42:05","slug":"what-is-keystone-takeaways-from-a-current-students-perspective","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/khcblog\/2021\/11\/19\/what-is-keystone-takeaways-from-a-current-students-perspective\/","title":{"rendered":"What is Keystone? Takeaways from a Current Student\u2019s Perspective"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>By Anna Natrakul (CAS \u201922)<\/p>\n<p><span><span>As a Kilachand student, you start hearing about<\/span><span>\u00a0the<\/span><span>\u00a0<\/span><span>senior<\/span><span>\u00a0Keystone Project from the time you arrive on campus (or probably even before that). I was always excited about the idea of Keystone but did not\u00a0<\/span><span>truly\u00a0<\/span><span>understand the essence of the project until I started working on my own. As a current senior in the midst of my Keystone journey, here are some takeaway points that I hope will clarify\u00a0<\/span><span>what an amazing opportunity this is<\/span><span>,<\/span><span>\u00a0and also get you excited about your\u00a0<\/span><span>own\u00a0<\/span><span>Keystone!<\/span><\/span><span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><b><span><span>Keystone is indeed a \u201csenior project\u201d, but not in the traditional sense<\/span><\/span><\/b><span><span>.\u00a0<\/span><span>While you gain important\u00a0<\/span><span>skills<\/span><span>\u00a0and meet certain expectations<\/span><span>\u00a0(<\/span><span>setting a project timeline, justifying your needs for funding, collaborating with<\/span><span>\u00a0faculty,\u00a0<\/span><span>creating a<\/span><span>\u00a0<\/span><span>deliverable,<\/span><span>\u00a0etc.)<\/span><span>,<\/span><span>\u00a0<\/span><span>a major theme of Keystone is\u00a0<\/span><span>the\u00a0<\/span><span>agency<\/span><span>\u00a0of the student<\/span><span>.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><i><span><span>You<\/span><\/span><\/i><span><span>\u00a0have complete control in terms of shaping\u00a0<\/span><span>the<\/span><span>\u00a0project, from choosing\u00a0<\/span><span>your \u201cpathway\u201d to the nature of your work. You want to do Honors in your major<\/span><span>\u00a0department<\/span><span>?\u00a0<\/span><span>Great<\/span><span>. You want your deliverable to be a scholarly paper<\/span><span>\u00a0based on your ethnographic fieldwork<\/span><span>? Amazing. You change your mind and want to create a book of poetry about your\u00a0<\/span><span>own\u00a0<\/span><span>experiences<\/span><span>\u00a0conducting the fieldwork<\/span><span>\u00a0instead? Also amazing.<\/span><span>\u00a0<\/span><span>Although\u00a0<\/span><span>having\u00a0<\/span><span>all<\/span><span>\u00a0these choices can seem daunting at first, making your own decisions is\u00a0<\/span><span>ultimately\u00a0<\/span><span>part of what makes th<\/span><span>e<\/span><span>\u00a0experience so special.<\/span><\/span><span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><b><span><span>You get to choose your faculty advisor<\/span><\/span><\/b><span><span>.\u00a0<\/span><span>You might send cold emails to professors you have never met or approach the principal investigator in the lab that you have worked in for years<\/span><span>.<\/span><span>\u00a0And the way that you make this decision is\u2026 whatever feels right for your project<\/span><span>!<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><b><span><span>You\u00a0<\/span><span>do not have to do a project within your specific major or college<\/span><\/span><\/b><span><span>.\u00a0<\/span><span>While my own research background\u00a0<\/span><span>ha<\/span><span>s\u00a0<\/span><span>been\u00a0<\/span><span>grounded in\u00a0<\/span><span>biochemi<\/span><span>cal\u00a0<\/span><span>lab<\/span><span>\u00a0techniques<\/span><span>,<\/span><span>\u00a0<\/span><span>I chose to do a\u00a0<\/span><span>clinical\u00a0<\/span><span>data analysis project in the BU School of Public Health<\/span><span>\u00a0for my Keystone<\/span><span>.<\/span><span>\u00a0<\/span><span>I have limited experience in<\/span><span>\u00a0this sphere<\/span><span>, but I am extremely interested, and my faculty advisor has\u00a0<\/span><span>given me helpful resources<\/span><span>\u00a0(<\/span><span>e.g.,\u00a0<\/span><span>relevant literature and tools for learning R)<\/span><span>\u00a0for learning along the way<\/span><span>.<\/span><span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span><span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"text-align: left\"><b><span><span>You<\/span><span>\u00a0are thoroughly supported\u00a0<\/span><span>during<\/span><span>\u00a0the entire process<\/span><\/span><\/b><span><span>.<\/span><span>\u00a0<\/span><span>The\u00a0<\/span><span>Keystone<\/span><span>\u00a0process<\/span><span>\u00a0is built so that y<\/span><span>our KHC instructors and peers offer valuable insights along the way.\u00a0<\/span><span>When I was first\u00a0<\/span><span>reaching<\/span><span>\u00a0out to potential faculty advisors,\u00a0<\/span><span>some of the most helpful suggestions came from<\/span><span>\u00a0the<\/span><span>\u00a0peers in\u00a0<\/span><span>my KHC\u00a0<\/span><span>c<\/span><span>ourse that semester<\/span><span>.\u00a0<\/span><span>The KHC coursework<\/span><span>\u00a0also<\/span><span>\u00a0gives\u00a0<\/span><span>clear\u00a0<\/span><span>guidance and sets you up for\u00a0<\/span><span>organizational\u00a0<\/span><span>success<\/span><span>,<\/span><span>\u00a0so that you do not\u00a0<\/span><span>get\u00a0<\/span><span>hung up on meeting<\/span><span>\u00a0<\/span><span>rigid<\/span><span>\u00a0requirements. Instead, you get to focus\u00a0<\/span><span>on developing a<\/span><span>n impactful<\/span><span>\u00a0body of work that will make you proud!<\/span><span>\u00a0<\/span><span>And to help you navigate<\/span><span>\u00a0r<\/span><span>oadblocks, change<\/span><span>s<\/span><span>\u00a0<\/span><span>in<\/span><span>\u00a0plans,\u00a0<\/span><span>or\u00a0<\/span><span>whatever\u00a0<\/span><span>questions<\/span><span>\u00a0you might have<\/span><span>, you have a full team behind you<\/span><span>.<\/span><\/span><span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span><span>For more official descriptions and pertinent information, be sure to check out the\u00a0<\/span><\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/khc\/for-current-students\/keystoneproject\/\"><span><span><span>Keystone Project section<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><span><span>\u00a0of the KHC website!\u00a0<\/span><\/span><span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Anna Natrakul (CAS \u201922) As a Kilachand student, you start hearing about\u00a0the\u00a0senior\u00a0Keystone Project from the time you arrive on campus (or probably even before that). I was always excited about the idea of Keystone but did not\u00a0truly\u00a0understand the essence of the project until I started working on my own. As a current senior in &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/khcblog\/2021\/11\/19\/what-is-keystone-takeaways-from-a-current-students-perspective\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">What is Keystone? Takeaways from a Current Student\u2019s Perspective<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8413,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[55],"tags":[7,86,61,30],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/khcblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/248"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/khcblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/khcblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/khcblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8413"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/khcblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=248"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/khcblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/248\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":254,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/khcblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/248\/revisions\/254"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/khcblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=248"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/khcblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=248"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/khcblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=248"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}