CDB graduate students wanted to open a discussion about career opportunities, particularly outside of academia. They formed a group that included students and postdocs in the summer of 2017, and to date, the group has hosted three alumni with very different and fascinating career paths.
Dr. Marshall Brennan (PhD Chemistry, ‘15) the Associate Editor of Nature Chemistry kicked off the inaugural session with a presentation on what it takes to be an editor. Dr. Brennan also spent time with graduate students by reviewing their resumes and writing samples from the perspective of an editorial position.
In the second session, Dr. Chad Stiening (BS Biology, ‘99), an entrepreneur and CEO of Kypha (St. Louis- based clinical diagnostic company) spoke to the students about the skills and characteristics, beyond
a degree in science, needed for entrepreneurial enterprises. He shared the mantra, “Failure is success,” and conveyed that as an entrepreneur, one should be ready to take risks and have perseverance for the end goal. His thoughts were relevant not only for budding scientist-entrepreneurs but to everyone in the graduate school.
The committee recently welcomed Dr. Melissa Junttila (BS Microbiology, ‘99) who is currently a Senior Scientist at Genentech, a biotechnology corporation researching and developing pharmaceuticals. Dr Junttila presented her recent research and answered questions about her career path. She also held mock interviews with students and postdocs to help them train better for industry related careers. Melissa believes that “in today’s world you can do good research, irrespective of the place/institute where you are located.”
