As we approach the MURF Research Symposium on April 30, 2025, we are happy to spotlight the Mortara Undergraduate Research Fellows (MURFs) who are graduating this year and will be presenting their final projects. This week, meet Jake Lang!
How has MURF shaped your academic or career goals?
If not for MURF I would most certainly not be where I am today. The unparalleled training and guidance I’ve received from my mentor, Professor Emily Mendenhall, has inspired me to pursue a PhD and a career in academia. She’s helped me recognize my potential and envision what a fulfilling academic path could look like, despite its obstacles. Her mentorship has shown me both the rigors and rewards of scholarly work and has given me the confidence to pursue this path with open eyes, genuine enthusiasm, and a commitment to health equity and social justice.
What advice would you give to future MURFs?
Read, read, read! Set up Google Scholar alerts for key topics, actively seek out foundational and cutting-edge papers, and take initiative beyond your immediate project to understand the broader scholarly conversation in your field.
What’s a memorable moment or challenge you faced as a MURF?
After finishing my first year at Georgetown, I was fortunate to receive funding from MURF to conduct exploratory ethnographic research in a West Virginia community experiencing elevated rates of opioid overdose. While driving across the state to meet interlocutors in a different county, I got caught in severe thunderstorms and heavy rainfall that caused flash flooding and mudslides in the area. Needless to say, my great-aunt’s 2008 Toyota Camry (which I borrowed for the trip) was not exactly equipped to brave these conditions. I’ll never forget the kindness I was shown by strangers who lended me a hand and seeing how the community rallied to support their neighbors in need. That moment taught me that fieldwork’s greatest lessons are often the most unexpected.
If your research were a movie, what would the title be?
Hollywood has brought aspects of what I study to the big screen. I highly recommend Painkiller, Dopesick, The Pharmacist, and Opioid Inc. But if my research on psychedelic politics were a movie, I’d have to call it “The Trip to Market.”