Yale-NUS students deepen their interest in research through Summer Research Programme

To support and further develop our students’ interest in research, the Yale-NUS Summer Research Programme (SRP) allows students to pursue full-time, funded research in the humanities, sciences, or social sciences during the mid-year break from May to August.

Over the term break, Ashley Rehn and Simran Kaur (both from the Class of 2025) undertook SRP projects in the United States and Singapore, respectively, and gained valuable research skills and exposure in the fields they are passionate about. As the last cohort to participate in the programme, their research highlights the diverse interests and depth of inquiry nurtured at the College.

Ashley Rehn’s project, ‘Weight-Loss Medications and Their Users: Comparing the Effects of Semaglutide on Obese and Normal Body Profiles’, compares the effects of weight-loss medications, particularly the ones with semaglutide as the active ingredient, on high-fat diet induced obese mice versus healthy, normal-weight individuals. “Combined with detailed tracking of animal weight, food intake, fat mass, and lean mass, this investigation is relatively a new field for exploration as it connects weight-loss medications, short-term high fat diet, and inflammation”, explained Ashley.

Working in the Horvath Lab under Tamas Horvath, Jean and David W. Wallace Professor of Comparative Medicine and Professor of Neuroscience at Yale University, her research is still in the exploratory phase, offering her unique opportunities to collaborate with various labs and Principal Investigators (PIs). Elaborating on her role in the lab, Ashley said, “I focus on the medication’s effects on inflammatory cytokines and hunger-signalling hormones, namely ghrelin and leptin, in both obese and normal-weight animals”.

Ashley’s fascination with the brain-gut relationship was sparked by her first neuroscience class at Yale-NUS, where she explored the concept of ‘hangry’ from a biological perspective. This initial curiosity evolved into a deeper interest in the interplay between the brain, feeding behaviour, and ageing. Currently enrolled in the five-year Concurrent Degree Programme with the Yale School of Public Health, Ashley is now completing her final year of studies at Yale where she will continue her research and capstone project.

Reflecting on her SRP experience, Ashley credited the pivotal role Yale-NUS played in nurturing her interests and providing her with opportunities such as attending the Yale Summer Bioethics Institute, and her Study Abroad semester at Yale University which led to her collaboration with Professor Horvath and allowed her to build connections with researchers working in her line of interest.

Ashley at the Horvath Lab (Image provided by Ashley Rehn)

Simran Kaur’s SRP, ‘A Transnational Feminist Analysis of 1960s Femina’ delved into the construction of womanhood in post-independent India by examining articles, advertisements and excerpts from Femina, India’s longest-running women’s magazine. Supervised by Yale-NUS Lecturer of Social Sciences (Sociology) Dr Bittiandra Chand Somaiah, the project focused on understanding how socio-political changes like economic liberalisation, globalisation, and rising nationalism influenced the representation of women. Simran’s project, situated in an era of transition between first and second-wave feminism, allowed her to explore cultural dynamics beyond the Western perspective, deepening her longstanding interests in gender studies, particularly its intersection with race, class, and colonialism.

Simran scanned old issues of Femina and analysed the content to draw out insights for her research.

Simran shared, “It is really interesting to look into the construction of womanhood during that time, especially when considering the context of post-independent India,” she noted, adding that while the content initially seemed overwhelming, she was able to develop strategies that effectively analysed large amounts of qualitative data to draw out meaningful insights.

Simran credited her gender-focused coursework at Yale-NUS for providing a solid foundation for her project. Courses like Women and Work Around the World, and Gendered Migration and Carework taught by Dr Chand, equipped her with the theoretical and historical context necessary for her research. The qualitative methods and critical interpretation skills developed through her SRP will be invaluable for her upcoming capstone project, supervised by Dr Chand.

The Summer Research Programme at Yale-NUS culminated in a Summer Research Symposium sharing session in September, where the student researchers presented their research to the Yale-NUS community. Their research projects not only contribute to their personal and academic growth but also reflect the College’s commitment to fostering a culture of inquiry and exploration.