Country’s largest internship program concluded successfully at the ICCBS-UOK

Prof. Dr. M. Iqbal Choudhary, Director of the International Center for Chemical and Biological Sciences, University of Karachi, and Coordinator General COMSTECH addressing the certificate distribution ceremony

KARACHI: The 16th Summer Internship Program-2023, the country’s largest internship program, has successfully completed at the International Center for Chemical and Biological Sciences (ICCBS), University of Karachi (UoK) on Friday.

This year, the internship program provided 180 students, belonging to various academic and research institutions of all four provinces, quality training in various fields of Biological and Chemical Sciences, Plant Biotechnology, Engineering, Information Technology, Food Sciences, Library Sciences, ISO and Marketing, Diagnostic Labs, IAC, CBSCR, etc.

Addressing the certificate distribution ceremony of the summer internship program 2023, held at the Golden Jubilee Hall of the ICCBS, Prof. Dr. M. Iqbal Choudhary, Director of the International Center for Chemical and Biological Sciences, and Coordinator General COMSTECH, highlighted the significance of scientific research in today’s fast-paced and competitive world, and how it is important for a developing country like ours.

He said, “The prime objective of this internship is to motivate students towards scientific research that attempts to explore and understand the working of the physical world.”

He said that internships provide students with hands-on experience, enabling them to enter the real-work scenario with practical skills. ICCBS has contributed to the global human resource development in the frontier fields of sciences, he said, adding that the 16th summer internship program, organized by ICCBS, University of Karachi, was a great opportunity for talented students who sought to get exposure to working in the world-class research and academic institution.

He underlined the importance of kindness for students, and said, “Benevolence improves people’s way of living and it brings people and society together and decreases hatred, negativity, and jealousy in the society.”

Prof. Choudhary congratulated Prof. Dr. Asmat Salim and her team for the successful completion of the 16th summer internship program.

Prof. Dr. Asmat Salim, a senior scientist at Dr. Panjwani Center for Molecular Medicine and Drug Research (PCMD) and the organizer of the internship program, said this internship program was initiated in the year 2008, and since then we have organized it regularly every year. This year, around 2000 students, who are in their final year of graduation from institutions all over the country, applied for the training program, she said, adding that as many as 180 students were selected for training and placed in different sections of the ICCBS. This year, we have participation not only from various institutions of Karachi, Sindh but also from other provinces, she informed the participants, adding that in total we have participation from 30 different universities.

She thanked all faculty, staff, and students for playing their key role in organizing the event. She hoped that the interns had a good, valuable, and enjoyable time at the ICCBS, and wished them all the best for their future.