David Standeven Email & Phone Number

Hello! I'm a graduate of the University of Tennessee with a Biological Sciences degree with a Concentration in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology along with a German Minor. I've been involved in the Biochemistry world since high school where I studied in the Biotechnology Pathway that my school offered. Along with the Biotech pathway I competed with my high school's IGEM team (International Genetic Engineered Machine competition) for 2 years (IGEM Wiki links: https://2016.igem.org/Team:LambertGA & https://2017.igem.org/Team:Lambert_GA ). During this time I also was a starting varsity player for my High school's football team, and at the end of my senior year was awarded both Lifetime Team Captain & Coach's Choice for my dedication and work ethic both on and off the field. Additionally I was an active member of the Boy Scouts of America since 2011, often serving many terms in my troop's leadership roles. In 2018 I was awarded the rank of Eagle Scout as well as the accessory Eagle Palms Bronze, Gold, and Silver. In 2018 I began attending the University of Tennessee intent on becoming involved with the Synthetic Biology field. Coinciding with my discovery and love of the field of Biochemistry was my love and admiration of the German language and culture, which I studied for 3 years in high school and continued through to this day with my classes and the UTK German Club with the hopes of minoring and after college becoming certified in the language. COVID-19 had a disappointing impact on my undergraduate career, not only because of the online classes on Zoom, but during my sophomore and junior semesters most biology labs on campus and around the Knoxville took very few, if any, new undergraduate interns. By the time my senior year started most labs opened up, but to my dismay many of these labs either required senior applicants to have previous research experience during their sophomore and junior years or simply didn't consider senior applicants. This left me stuck in a grey area of candidacy, but that hasn't deterred me from actively pursuing new internships and research opportunities. My ambition is to expand my research experience and put what I've learned into practice.My personal philosophy is that those who stop learning will stop growing. As a scientist this principle is even more vital as our understanding of the world is constantly changing and expanding every day, scientists are explorers on the ever-moving frontier of knowledge. My desire is to, in my own small way, chip away at that frontier.