by Eugene Yoon

As I sit here typing this blog in front of my intern desk, I can’t help but imagine all the other interns in the world and what might possibly be on their daily “To-Do List” — maybe their typical day consists of getting coffee, filing papers, or sucking up to the boss. Whatever the responsibilities, I’m pretty confident that most interns don’t approach their work thinking “Today, my boss is gonna have to answer to me.” However, for one intern, this was the case.

A year ago, a teenager named Andy Callen (pictured here) went beyond his typical intern workload at the University of California, San Francisco. His supervisor asked Andy to research the possible causes of spina bifida, a birth defect that results in an abnormal spine development. After weeks of research, Andy discovered that a solid study did not exist, and took matters into his own little intern hands. What happened next was a medical revelation that spurred professionals around the world to reevaluate the capabilities of an intern. After three months of conducting his own study, Andy pinpointed a brain abnormality in babies carrying this disease, and wrote a paper that is now published in a medical journal. The paper, which is full of medical jargon and big grown-up words, is now being used to find a cure that can quite possibly make spina bifida a thing of the past.

Now, if you’re like me, you’re probably thinking that Andy is just not like the rest of us interns — God didn’t bless all of us with the rare gift of being an Einstein-like medical prodigy. Some of us actually have lives, like to go to the movies, and actually act and behave like normal teenagers/college students. However, I know for a fact that Andy doesn’t fit the typical prodigy image. He’s in a frat, he loves going to the movies, and he’s made all the same mistakes (and probably more) that any other college student has — I would know, I was probably there with him. I have the unfortunate pleasure of calling him my best friend. So, for all you interns who thought that the remainder of your interning career would be limited to coffee, files, and pesky phone calls — think again. You have the resources right in front of you to accomplish what my best friend did — make the boss listen to you.

takepart at any intern desk and utilize every opportunity you have in front of you to inspire change.