A single research lab lays foundations for many career paths
In 2022, students from Muyskens lab presented their research at a poster fair at Michigan State University. (From left to right): Lauren Timmer, Andrea Van Engen - Ver Beek, Leah Knoor, Isaac Jonker, Jonathan Holdrige, and Mark Muyskens.
This summer, Professor Mark Muyskens placed his fifth publication in his field’s top journal: The Journal of Physical Chemistry. While that’s an impressive feat in and of itself, what stands out most is his list of co-authors.
“I am pleased that the paper includes 18 student co-authors, which recognizes the contributions from these students over a 10-year period of research,” said Muyskens, a professor of chemistry at Calvin University.
Seeing a variety of success stories come out of a single lab
Many of those co-authors have since graduated from Calvin. Joy Yoo ’16 is a data scientist in Texas at the Houston Methodist Research Institute. Michael Vandenberg ’16 is a research assistant at the FDA in Washington, D.C. Hunter Pham ’20 is an emergency medicine resident physician at Corewell Health in Michigan, and Jonathan Holdridge ’24 is teaching science and health at Seattle Christian Schools in Washington. Many others are in graduate school pursuing degrees in everything from medicine to law.
Their paths all look different, but they all ran through Muyskens' lab, and all contributed to a decade-long research project.
“I am amazed and honored,” said George Du Laney ’22, a PhD candidate in the department of chemistry and chemical biology at Cornell University. “It was a privilege to work with other members of the Muyskens group who made the research possible.”
“It was a great experience working with Dr. Muyskens and getting to be a part of this long-term project was an honor,” said Lauren Timmer ’24, an MD candidate at Wayne State University’s School of Medicine.
Discovering a love for research
The end result of the project was significant, but their experience researching alongside Muyskens and a small team of students each summer produced much greater gains—for some it even served as an initial spark.
“It was in the Muyskens group that I truly fell in love with research – the excitement of being at the bench, working through complex problems, and finding answers,” said Andrea Van Engen – Ver Beek ’23, a PhD candidate at Wayne State University. “Professor Muyskens was a fabulous mentor who sparked my curiosity and gave me the freedom to test every hypothesis, no matter how wild. That encouragement didn’t just teach me how to do research; it taught me to see myself as a scientist and showed me just how far my passion could take me.”
Developing skills that translate to grad school and beyond
Van Engen – Ver Beek says while the research she is doing in grad school is different from what she did at Calvin, the foundation that was laid in Muyskens’ lab is a big part of her scientific journey. And that foundation was poured in different ways for each of those who had the privilege of working one-on-one with Muyskens.
“Through my research experience, Professor Muyskens taught me the value of bringing rigor, courage, and a sense of wonder to scientific research. These qualities are what enable me to pursue meaningful scientific inquiry to this day,” said Du Laney.
“In the lab particularly, I learned how to ask good questions and go about finding answers for myself which has become a fundamental part of my study practices in med school,” said Timmer.
“My experience with Professor Muyskens prepared me for chemistry graduate school both in the specifics (experience with spectroscopy and wet chemistry) but also in the general (reading academic papers, preparing posters and manuscripts, planning experiments, interpreting results, etc.),” said Isaac Jonker ’23, who is a PhD candidate at Penn State University. “I have benefited significantly from the research and from the mentorship of Professor Muyskens.”
Experiencing close mentorship that opened doors
Looking back, graduates reflect fondly on their time at Calvin as they now better understand just how unique it was that they were able to have such close proximity to their professors and be partners in significant research.
“The degree of dedication and investment I received from my professors at Calvin, both in the lab and in the classroom, was something quite unique for an undergraduate education,” said Du Laney. “It’s what enabled me to pursue a graduate degree, and its integration with faith is what continues to drive me to serve as an agent of renewal in the world.”
For 37 years, Muyskens has mentored 92 students, involved many of them in research and has had dozens of student co-authors across several publications. Each summer, Calvin University professors representing multiple disciplines work with more than 100 students on research projects.
