ATLANTA — During her undergraduate career in neuroscience, Iyanuoluwa Adedokun’s (B.S. '25) experience in the Beckman Scholars Program allowed her to grow as a researcher and scientific communicator. Over the course of 15 months, the program provided her with financial support, mentorship and networking opportunities as she investigated the impact of opioid exposure during pregnancy on caregiving behavior. She's now pursuing her master's degree in neuroscience at Georgia State.
About the Beckman Scholars Program
The Honors College names two Beckman Scholars each academic year, making the application process highly competitive. This opportunity allows undergraduate students in biomedical sciences, biology, chemistry and neuroscience to conduct independent research under expert faculty members, including two summers of full-time lab work. The program is supported by a generous grant from the Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation.
Adedokun submitted an application for the Beckman Scholars Program detailing her academic interests, long-term goals and commitment to scientific research. She and her family left their home country of Nigeria when she was young, and she wants to use her experience and skills to help improve the quality of life for Nigerian women and children. She hopes to improve their overall health outcomes and promote self-advocacy strategies.
Faculty members and investigators, including Professor of Neuroscience and Psychology Marise Parent, the Honors College faculty associate for the Beckman Scholars Program, then assessed Adedokun’s potential for individual research and leadership through a series of interviews. Adedokun attended interview preparation workshops within the Honors College beforehand to help her become a competitive candidate.
“Being selected as a Beckman Scholar was a pivotal moment in my academic journey, validating my passion for neuroscience and science communication,” she said.
Research and Publications
Adedokun joined the Murphy Lab, operated by Anne Murphy, acting director of the Neuroscience Institute, in May 2024. There, she worked under a graduate student mentor who studies how opioid exposure in pregnant rats impacts the offspring’s brain development. Adedokun produced video recordings of postnatal care and analyzed related data during her first summer in the lab. This work earned her a third-author publication in a June 2025 edition of Neuropharmacology, a global, peer-reviewed scientific journal.
Adedokun continued to conduct behavioral experiments to further explore how morphine exposure might alter maternal care and attentiveness in rats. This process sharpened her skills in experimental design, data collection and data analysis. Her findings suggest that opioid exposure during pregnancy disrupts maternal responsiveness. Her work also creates ways to understand how this altered maternal care and attentiveness may affect the respective offspring.
Adedokun’s experience in the program wasn’t restricted to the lab. She mentored undergraduate and K-12 students and presented at multiple research conferences, including the Georgia State Undergraduate Research Conference. She earned an award for best overall poster design and presentation at Georgia State University’s Symposium for Undergraduate Neuroscience in fall 2024.
Adedokun said one of the most rewarding parts of the Beckman Scholars Program was working alongside fellow researchers. Weekly lab meetings and one-on-one mentorship sessions provided her with support and critical feedback as she refined her experimental design.
“The lab environment fostered both independence and community, allowing me to grow as a researcher, mentor and person,” she said.
Building on the Beckman Scholars Program
Adedokun described her experience in the Beckman Scholars Program as “transformative.”
“Most importantly, it instilled in me a deeper sense of responsibility to use science as a tool for societal impact,” she said.
Adedokun improved her scientific communication skills significantly throughout the program.
“With encouragement and modeling by graduate students in the lab, Iyanu continued to present poster after poster, conference after conference, building her confidence at every turn,” Murphy said.
The Beckman Scholars Program was just one step in Adedokun’s scientific research journey. She plans to pursue an M.D./Ph.D., focusing her research on neurodevelopment and substance use. She’s considering graduate schools like the Emory University School of Medicine and the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.
“My long-term goal is to lead a research lab that integrates behavioral neuroscience with clinical applications, while also contributing to science education and policy,” she said.
Adedokun is continuing her research in the Murphy Lab throughout the spring, with plans to complete her master’s degree this December.
The Honors College at Georgia State University is a destination for high-achieving students who embody curiosity, take pride in their work and dream about how they can make an impact through their studies and careers. Its mission is to serve students in a welcoming space by engaging students’ curiosity, empowering them to achieve their highest potential and inspiring them to find their place in the world. Its students form life-long friendships, participate in community service, perform research, excel academically, explore their interests and chart their career paths.
Story By:
Heather Fields
Heather Fields is a third-year journalism student in the Honors College who serves as a reporter for Honors College Communications. She loves philosophy, foreign language studies and cats.