April Li

David’s NYU mentee | Undergraduate researcher | 2022-2024

Next step after leaving the lab: PhD student at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

My name is April Li, and I graduated from NYU College of Arts and Sciences in Spring 2024 with a major in Biology and a minor in Chemistry. I will be a first-year PhD student at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in the Fall of 2024. I started working in the Desplan lab in the Summer of 2022, with David as my direct mentor. I feel very fortunate to have joined David’s team and appreciate all the guidance and support I have received from him.

David is a wonderful mentor and an outstanding teacher. David used to work as our Molecular Cell Biology recitation instructor, and he was very approachable and explained things very well. After I joined his team, I benefited greatly from his excellent teaching skills. He explained difficult concepts clearly, which has been tremendously helpful throughout my research experience in the Desplan Lab. With his guidance, I was able to work independently on my project and started to think critically shortly after I joined the lab. Collaborating with another undergraduate student on our team, I worked on designing crossing schemes to develop a protocol for generating cost-effective genetic tools for Drosophila. With David’s support, we were able to write and publish our first scientific paper in Star Protocols in December 2023.

David cares deeply about his mentees’ individual growth. During my junior year, I felt very lost about my plans after college and hoped to discuss them with David. He was willing to sit down with me for hours and provide constructive advice, which helped me a lot. I was able to think about my career options more thoroughly and started to connect with people in the field early on. He also cares about his mentees’ goals and supports us in achieving them. For his mentees who were working on honor thesis, he held weekly meetings to discuss our progress and provide feedback on our projects and writing. During the summer, he organized weekly journal clubs to teach us how to read and understand papers related to our projects. Additionally, he always kept an eye out for potential resources that his mentees might benefit from. With his encouragement and help, I was able to present my work at the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minoritized Scientists (ABRCMS), Developmental Biology New York (DBNY), and NYU undergraduate research conferences. This greatly improved my presentation and communication skills. During my graduate school application period, he sent me useful information to help me better prepare for writing statements and interviews.

I am extremely grateful for having had the opportunity to work with David, who deeply values mentorship and dedicates his time to creating a supportive and positive environment for everyone in the lab. His commitment to fostering a collaborative and nurturing atmosphere has been instrumental in my academic and personal growth. David’s guidance extends beyond just the technical aspects of research; he also encourages us to develop critical thinking skills, resilience, and confidence in our abilities. I would highly recommend David’s lab to anyone looking for a supportive environment to explore science and grow to their full potential. David’s dedication to his mentees’ success is unparalleled, and his lab will provide an enriching experience for all who join.

Awards

- Genetics Society of America (GSA) 2024 TAGC Travel Award (Spring 2024)

- NYU Dean's Undergraduate Research Fund X2 (Spring 2023, Fall 2023)

- NYU Dean's Undergraduate Research Fund Conference Grant (Fall 2023)