Category: Graduate Student
Eureka! My Path to Studying the Epigenome
Bo Xia is a Ph.D. candidate at NYU School of Medicine. He is co-mentored by Dr. Itai Yanai and Dr. Jef Boeke. Bo is fascinated by the nature of the genome. He uses novel single-cell and spatial-resolved transcriptomics to study...
Positivity in the Face of Setbacks: My Developing Journey in Science
Saumya Menon - Motherhood is a full time job. My family is my priority but I continue to yearn for the day when I will get the opportunity to continue my journey pursuing a career in research. I am confident...
How to Create a Supportive Space for Scientists to Share Stories of Struggles
To test out these hypotheses, Shaina Lu, a graduate student in Tony Zador’s lab, had an idea: why don’t we hold an “open mic night” for people to share stories of struggles and setbacks in a safe, supportive, and respectful...
The Day I Met Her
I carefully approached her with the intention to learn more. I took the first step to introduce myself with a “hi, my name is Ivan." It didn’t quite work as she seemed hesitant to respond. Nevertheless, I had to strike...
Me Versus Me
It was around 8th grade that my own personal video game boss blocked my progression. I was struggling in an earth science class and failing to reach the high standards I had set for myself. It wasn’t long before I...
Best of Both Worlds: A Two-Timer’s Story
To this very day, I will often get comments on being a fool leaving a well-paid full-time job for a career in research that may not guarantee me an academic position. However, I am still full of gusto entering the...
Discovering the Scientist Within Me
– Stefanie Morgan – – Doctoral Student in Cancer Biology at Stanford University – The first time I met a scientist was in college. Prior to then, science seemed just an abstract concept that was reserved for the unusually intelligent....
Two Steps Forward, One Step Back
– Edritz Javelosa – The luscious vegetation, crawling critters, warm beaches, and the tropical climate of the Philippines – an archipelago with more than 7,000 islands, tons of natural resources, and a wide range of biodiversity – was the setting...
Swimming in the Sea of Mysteries
– Hyunseung Hong – For as long as I can remember, my scientific pursuits have given me the eyes to see and understand the world around me. I was intrigued by science because it allowed me to better understand how...
How Can We Help? Creating the Superwomen in Science Podcast
– Cordon Purcell & Nicole George – In the fall of 2016, we were both in our first year of grad school and living together in Montreal (Cordon was sleeping on a crappy air mattress in Nicole’s living room). As...
Playing in the Dirt and Calling it Science
– By Stephanie Halmhofer | Bioarchaeologist – For some, the line from point A to point B is fairly straight. For others, it’s a zig-zag. I am definitely a zig-zagger. I didn’t find an easy, straightforward path into becoming a...
Diffraction
– Rowena Fletcher-Wood | Programme Delivery Officer at Science Oxford – The story below by Rowena was originally published in 2014 through the Story Collider. You can listen or read it below! When I was eighteen, I loved school and I loved...
Making My Way from Mountains to Mud: Part 3
– by Robin McLachlan – We teach school children that science is inaccessible and scientists are socially inept. Crazy scientists hide behind lab benches. They are disguised beneath white coats and thick glasses. Their hair is disheveled, their motivations shady, their...
Why I Sci
by Natalie Hamer | Biomedical Science Student at Newcastle University | My favorite question has always been ‘why?’ As a child, this question frustrated my mother to no end. I asked her a million questions, and interrogated all of her answers....
Discovering my identity as a scientist
by Tyler A. Allen | NC State University, College of Veterinary Medicine | My journey into science was a seemingly unexpected yet inevitable one. I am the first person in my family to venture into the field of science as a...
Ordinary Folks Doing Extraordinary Things
by David Denlinger | Department of Biology | Utah State University Everyday when we wake up, whether we recognize it or not, our lives are inspired by science: not being crippled by polio or smallpox, the food we eat, the vehicles...
Making My Way from Mountains to Mud: Part 2
– Robin McLachlan – <> In Part 1 of this journey, I bumbled down into Crystal Cave, the rocky heart of Sequoia National Park, where my love for geology was ignited. But if this fiery relationship started way up in...
Books and family: My path towards the world of science
Dinner table discussions centered around political and economic analysis of world events but most importantly the future of the African continent.
I always thought I wanted to be a scientist
– Michelle Dookwah – Graduate Research Assistant at the University of Georgia I always thought I wanted to be a scientist, yet I considered other careers at brief points in my life. When I was really young, I wanted to...
Finding the Strength to Succeed
– Ashley Taylor – 5th Year PhD Candidate | Department of Chemistry | Louisiana State University Science was my first love because my parents also loved science. They made sure my siblings and I were introduced to science fairs, science...
Making My Way from Mountains to Mud: Part 1
– Robin McLachlan – Graduate Student | University of Washington | Oceanography | Sediment Dynamics Group <> How did I make my way from mountains to mud? Well, I had just graduated high school and was celebrating my last summer before starting...
A rollercoaster ride to finding my passion in computer science
– Ruth Agbaji – CEO & Founder at TheGradSpark I grew up in an academic environment. My father was into biochemistry research and my mom was a chemistry professor. They were – and still are – forward thinking people. As...
My Journey with Science
Anonymous || I have been interested in science from a young age when I liked to build intricate contraptions that I called “inventions”. These gadgets made from rubber bands and other household items helped me explore how moving parts worked...
Love The Path You Travel
Jessica Rauchut – Research Associate at Penn State Hershey Medical School || At 22, many of us are graduating, starting new jobs, becoming doctors, getting married, or having kids, while the rest of us are still trying to figure out how...