Valedictorian on the fast-track route to a PhD
Harrison Saulnier, who graduated with a bachelor of science in biochemistry (honours) and a minor in multidisciplinary studies in science from Concordia’s Science College, had originally hoped to get into a pre-med program but wasn’t accepted.
“So I figured I would get a degree in chemistry, which I always thought was the hardest subject in Cegep, and see where that brought me,” he says.
He still hopes to become a doctor and believes that his time at Concordia has prepared him better than any other academic route he could have taken.
Saulnier’s program required him to complete a number of research projects. The one that interested him the most was in the field of behavioural neuroscience. He focused on the ways that ethanol changes the behaviour of rats.
“What I concluded was that when the male rat was drunk, he totally disregarded his previously made preferences about female rats. So I pretty much proved the beer goggles phenomenon,” he says with a laugh in reference to the term describing the common lowering of sexual inhibitions with alcohol consumption.
James Pfaus, a Department of Psychology professor who supervised some of Saulnier’s research, describes Saulnier as a dedicated student who loves to laugh.
“Harrison was an incredibly funny, hard-working student in the lab, and extremely helpful to my grad students,” says Pfaus, who specializes in the neurochemistry of sexual behaviour. “He is intelligent, alive, and passionate about what he does.”
Saulnier enjoys taking academics out of the classroom, too. He voluntarily tutors 11 high-school, Cegep and university students in math and sciences.
“I do a lot of volunteering. When someone asks something of me, I rarely say no. I think if people have the guts and humility to ask for help, then they deserve to get it,” he adds.
Harrison is the recipient of several distinguished academic honours, awards, scholarships and medals, including: two Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) awards, two Undergraduate Summer Research Day awards, the Loyola Foundation Entrance Scholarship (renewed twice), and the Science College Annual Scholarship and Prize for excellence.
Throughout his university studies, Saulnier was extensively involved in campus life. He started as vice-president, external for the Association of Biochemistry and Chemistry Undergraduate Students, and went on to become its president. Saulnier was also a council member for the Arts and Science Federation of Associations (ASFA), representing the Science College and later the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry.
Despite heavy course loads and extracurricular commitments, he still managed to graduate at the top of his class with a grade point average of 3.86. As a result, Saulnier was selected as one of three valedictorians by the Faculty of Arts and Science Faculty for the June 18 convocation. He also received the Science College Medal of Excellence.
In the fall, Saulnier will on the fast-track route towards a PhD because of his superior academic performance at the undergraduate level. Working in the biochemistry lab of assistant professor Peter Pawelek, Saulnier’s main focus will be on understanding the virulent aspects of iron-stealing bacteria that result in a number of harsh infections.
Saulnier is currently working at the Royal Victoria Hospital as an intensive care unit coordinator. He says the experience has given him an inside look at the medical profession, and reinforced his desire to pursue a medical career.
“Science research is great, but it takes months before you see results,” he says. “As a doctor, you see tangible results every day. Plus you get to help people, and that’s what I really love.”
Related links:
• Read about more 2012 Great Grads in the Faculty of Arts and Science
• The Science College
• Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry