|
 My interest in graduate school began while taking a general
microbiology course during my junior year of college at Stephen F.
Austin State University. As the semester progressed, I found myself
increasingly fascinated with this particular field, especially in the
areas of environmental and clinical microbiology. My initial involvement
in research began while carrying out an undergraduate project involving
the process of bioremediation (detoxification of contaminated soil
through stimulation of endogenous flora) during my senior year. Upon
completion of my Bachelor of Science degree, I pursued a Masters degree
continuing my work in environmental microbiology. I used this time to
decide if I wanted to seriously pursue a career in research and
eventually decided to proceed on this course. My decision was to
continue in the field of microbiology, but my growing interest in
infectious disease research impacted my decision to pursue a Ph.D. in
clinical microbiology.
I wanted to
attend an institution that allowed me to remain in Texas and relatively
close to my family and friends. I also felt that there were plenty of
reputable schools within the state in which to seek my degree. To
increase my chances of admission, I applied to every state institution
offering a doctoral degree in microbiology. I was granted interviews to
several schools which included Texas A&M, University of Texas Medical
Branch, Baylor College of Medicine, and University of Texas Health
Science Center in Houston.
After interviewing at various schools and receiving several letters of
acceptance, I decided to pursue my Ph.D. at The University of Texas
Medical Branch. There are several reasons why I made this choice. First
of all, I was currently working as a research assistant in a cancer
research lab at UTMB and thus I already had some insight into what the
school and graduate program had to offer. I had also concluded that UTMB
had a much more diverse faculty which could provide a wider selection of
research interests in comparison to other institutions at which I had
interviewed. This was one of the critical factors on which I based my
decision. I had not yet decided on a particular area to pursue my
research, and, therefore, I wanted the flexibility of attending an
institution which provided me with the most options. Other
factors included competitive stipends, location, and cost of living. The
UTMB Graduate Program offered competitive funding and Galveston seemed
to be most reasonable choice when addressing the other factors.
The
interview process at UTMB and the other institutions was very similar
regarding the interviews and activity schedule. This mainly included a
full day of back-to-back interviews, meals with different students and
faculty, and touring the local area with nightly activities. Some
institutions presented a more sociable and relaxed atmosphere, while
others appeared were less personable and exhibited almost a
business-like environment. The latter was definitely a concern when
considering that I would be working in this environment for several
years. I found UTMB to be an intermediate between these two settings and
that was the work environment that I found most appealing. I found
myself to be in a unique situation during some of my interviews. Some of
the schools sent me letters of acceptance prior to being interviewing. I
must admit that the stress of the interview process was relieved to a
great degree when interviewing with these schools which contrasted the
traditional interview process. I found my experience to be more of one
in which I was evaluating the schools to make my decision on which to
attend as opposed to which schools would admit me into their program. My
interview with UTMB gave me an overall idea of what to expect during my
first year of graduate school, but no one could really provide insight
into the highs and lows of what I would be going through my first year
of the program.
My
experiences with the integrated first-year curriculum were both positive
in some respects and negative in others. I liked the option of having
the freedom of not being forced to choose a department during my first
year of graduate school. The three core classes (Cell Biology,
Biochemistry, and Molecular Genetics) were set up such that different
lectures were taught by different faculty members who specialize in that
subject area. The major flaw I found with this arrangement was that not
all faculty members were effective lecturers, and, thus, there would be
both productive and non-productive lectures based on the individual
lecturing styles of the speakers. This became a problem when preparing
for exams because questions based on lectures taught by the less
effective speakers placed me and my classmates at a disadvantage in
studying that material. This was due to the fact that the material was
not presented clearly and in an understandable manner thus resulting
with misinterpreted information or material which was not understood at
all. The core classes did, however, provide a nice foundation of
material from which I and my peers could expand upon as we began taking
our departmental classes. Another problem with the first-year curriculum
was the length and number of required course electives. These eight-week
courses were too brief to gain any depth of information from each class.
In addition, a number of these electives were required during the first
year of school which made me feel that the curriculum was substituting
quality for quantity in terms of these electives.
To pursue
my studies in infectious diseases, I decided to join the Microbiology
and Immunology Department upon entering my second year of the graduate
program. The criteria I used to base this decision included choosing a
department that would provide me with a strong foundation of basic and
traditional course work from which I could further extend my knowledge
of infectious diseases and their causative agents. With this department,
I felt confident that I could find that foundation through the required
departmental courses (Pathogenic Bacteriology, Virology, and Advanced
Immunology). I also felt very comfortable interacting with the
departmental faculty and staff, which is an element I didn’t experience
with other departments.
When
choosing my laboratory rotations, I attempted to select diverse labs
focusing on different pathogens and carrying out work on different
aspects of each microorganism. These rotations included working in labs
carrying out research in the fields of bacteriology and virology, each
focusing on different areas, such as molecular signaling mechanisms,
pathogenesis, surface protein characteristics, therapeutic treatments,
and genetics. I believe that choosing a lab is one of the most
significant decisions to make as a graduate student. Two major factors
which can impact an individual’s progress and overall experience as a
student include the working environment of the lab and the relationship
established with the primary investigator. When considering these
factors, I felt that additional rotations were a wise investment during
my search for a lab and pursued three rotations beyond the traditional
three required for my program.
I was also
looking for a mentor who would be supportive of my progress as a student
in their lab and one who would not treat me as just another technician.
On a personal level, I wanted a mentor to be someone who would allow me
the freedom to do my work at my own pace in their lab to meet my
personal deadlines. I also wanted a mentor who would make time in their
schedule for personal meetings so I could receive suggestions and
feedback regarding the progress of my work and interpretation of my
experimental data. As I progressed through my rotations it became
increasingly clear that I was interested in the field of bacteriology
and I was fortunate to find a mentor and a lab that I felt comfortable
joining and which satisfied most of the attributes I was looking for.
While my interactions with other researchers during my rotations were
very positive experiences, those labs did not satisfy my expectations
for the environment in which to work for the duration of my graduate
studies. In the event that I would have been forced to choose between a
laboratory which conducted research focused specifically on my
scientific interest or a lab which provided a positive and productive
work environment, I would have chosen the latter. I feel that your work
environment can have a major impact on your attitude towards your
research and productivity in the lab. When looking at the process of
graduate school as a whole, this is only a temporary compromise until
graduation after which you can pursue your own particular research
interests for the remainder of your career.
The most
miserable and yet fulfilling experience that I have experienced as a
graduate student has been the dreaded qualifying exam. This exam has
been a major decisive factor for the direction my own career as well as
my fellow graduate students. I have witnessed my peers both successfully
excel through this “trial by fire” and continue in their graduate
programs while others were dismissed from their respective departments
or chose to leave of their own accord. It eventually becomes a decision
of what one is willing to sacrifice to acquire their doctoral degree. In
my case, I had already sacrificed enough of my time and money to
complete the first half of my graduate studies. I had already survived
the onslaught of first year classes and departmental classes, and I was
determined to graduate. I spent several months writing my proposal and
preparing for my oral examination. For those who have never taken this
exam, it is quite difficult to decide how to prepare for it due to the
variability among committee members for each student and different
departmental requirements. I felt that I prepared as thoroughly as I
could and was overwhelmed with the amount of information I attempted to
learn both from my classes and the scientific literature on which my
proposal was based. As I presented my proposal to my committee I started
to have difficulty in defending certain aspects of my experiment designs
which I proposed in my aims sections. The questions seemed to increase
and I started to feel my confidence decline further and further. It is
at this particular point that one’s committee members start to “smell
blood and then go in for the kill”. It was not that I felt my committee
members were unfair in their evaluations and final decision, but,
regardless, the final judgment was not in my favor. It is at this point
I felt like someone had just dropped a car on my head. I was devastated,
angry, sad, and extremely disappointed. After a few days of reflection,
I looked at my options which were: one, to re-evaluate my career choice
or two, to re-take the exam in a year (this was standard procedure for
my department). After much thought, I decided to pursue option two. Much
to my excitement and joy, the results of my second examination were the
exact opposite of the first. Not only was my committee pleased with my
performance in contrast to my first examination, I was ecstatic by the
compliments from different committee members with respect to my overall
presentation. This made my decision to retake the exam well worth the
wait. What I took away from this experience is that one should never
give up own their career goals, but to remain focused and persistent
until they finally reach that goal.
Since the
qualifying exam, I have gained a renewed determination to push forward
with my research and graduate with my doctoral degree. I am currently in
the process of applying for candidacy and forming the supervisory
committee for my dissertation project. I maintain positive relationships
with my fellow students, departmental faculty, and staff. All of these
individuals can be very helpful on many levels--whether it be advice on
a particular experiment or help in making handouts for a presentation. I
feel I have a good relationship with my mentor. He is very supportive of
my work and growth as a student. I’m given the freedom to carry out my
research at my discretion and seek independent support and guidance from
other faculty members. I am satisfied with my lab and the availability
of equipment that I use to carry out my research. Moreover, in the event
my lab does not have what I need to perform a task, I can always seek
assistance and equipment from neighboring labs which is a nice
alternative. At this point in my graduate career, I have no regrets
about the lab and mentor I have chosen. After almost two years of
research and being awarded external fellowships, I feel that if I had to
change mentors it would be at a great disadvantage to me, considering
the amount of research I have completed and the time I have invested in
my work. I feel that the guidance I have received from my mentor thus
far has been very valuable, and the continued support I receive from
other faculty members has had a major impact as I continue through the
second half of my graduate career. I’ve had limited interactions with
the Dean’s office and the graduate school administration, but those few
interactions have been very positive and efficient when support was
requested.
My
experiences, thus far, from the graduate program have definitely
confirmed my decision to further pursue clinical research in the
academic or private sectors. I am even considering pursuing an M.B.A. to
become more competitive for potential jobs if I do decide to look into
business-related areas such as biotechnology. However, my future
direction has not yet been formulated. I’m keeping my options open to
see what opportunities become available as I approach graduation. My
present career objectives remain consistent with my goals from beginning
the graduate program at UTMB. Two major contributing factors which have
helped me stay on track continue to be the support I have received from
my mentor, peers, and departmental faculty, and the encouragement given
to me by my qualifying exam committee after completing my second
qualifying examination. In addition, my determination and persistence
have helped me to continue my journey through the graduate program until
I acquire my degree. After graduation, I look forward to continuing my
career as a scientist and contributing to my respective scientific area
of interest.
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 About
myself
My
name is Mohammad Eghtedari; my twin sister and I were born in 1972 in
Shiraz, Iran. I completed elementary, middle, and high school in my
hometown. During high school, I especially enjoyed my physics courses
and in 1989 was invited to join the Iranian national physics team which
would attend the world-wide Olympiad of physics. I got my high school
diploma in mathematics and physics in 1990 and my M.D. degree in 1997
from Shiraz University of Medical Sciences.
Although I was a physician, I enjoyed basic sciences more than my
clinical experiences and this is the main reason why I am pursuing a
Ph.D. here at UTMB instead of practicing medicine. My extracurricular
activities include designing and making electronic circuits and model
aircrafts, as well as computer hardware and programming.
Last
summer, I married a lovely girl who had recently graduated from UTMB and
is a pediatrician. Currently, I am a third year graduate student at the
Center for Biomedical Engineering and am preparing to propose the title
of my thesis very soon.
Applying to graduate school
I
decided to become a researcher in biomedical engineering a long time
ago. Early on in medical school, I realized that being a clinician was
not what I wanted and so I started asking my professors about
possibilities for pursuing research. When I explained my interests and
capabilities, they advised me to apply for biomedical engineering; a
field which they believed was a promising discipline and matched my
interests. Because of that, I planned early in medical school to improve
my knowledge in mathematics, physics, computer sciences, and electronics
while I was studying medicine. It is noteworthy to mention that the
title of my thesis in medical school was “Designing and making a pulse-oximeter”
which won the letter of excellence at that time.
At the
time I graduated from medical school, there were only two biomedical
engineering departments in Iran. Both of them were a branch of
electrical engineering and so chose prospective students with
engineering, rather than medical backgrounds; thus, there was no way for
me to study biomedical engineering in Iran. This made me seek
opportunities abroad. Searching the internet, I found many opportunities
in the US for a medical doctor to study biomedical engineering, and
among them, the program at UT Austin appealed to me the most.
Taking
the GRE and TOEFL was a general requirement for applying to graduate
school but due to the conflicts between the U.S. and Iran, there was no
center in Iran to take these tests. I remember my frustration while
trying to order reading materials for these tests online. As soon as I
would enter Iran in the shipping address, a message appeared on the
screen explaining that due to the U.S. sanctions, they cannot send any
books to Iran and so my order was canceled. This made me sad for a while
but I recovered soon and searched for alternate opportunities. I started
reading very old books that I found in a shop to prepare for TOEFL and
GRE and traveled to the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.), a small country
located south of Iran, in order to take these tests.
Having
GRE and TOEFL scores in my hand, I applied to U.T. Austin for a Ph.D. in
biomedical engineering. They were quite interested in my file after
interviewing me over the phone, but because of the fact that I was not
an engineer, they could not accept me in their program. However, they
advised me to apply to UTMB which was accepting students who had a
biology background. They recommended me to Dr. Motamedi, who is my
current supervisor at UTMB, and he kindly promised to support my
application after he reviewed my file and talked to me over the phone.
His major concern was that many of the medical graduates from the Middle
East who come to the U.S. as a Ph.D. student leave the laboratory and
continue their medical educations as a resident before finishing their
research project. Fortunately, I convinced him that I am not that kind
of student.
During
spring 2001, the committee members at GSBS reviewed applicants to select
students for the following fall. I could not wait to hear from the
committee through mail and so I was calling their secretary every week
to get the updated news. Finally, the secretary told me that the
committee who reviewed my file in their last session did not make any
decision; “This may be good or bad news for you; call us next week” she
added. That week was one of the longest weeks I have ever had in my
life. The following Friday, I was able to clearly hear my heart beat at
7PM when I was dialing their number from Iran… Beep… it was about
10:30AM Galveston time… Beep…
The
lady answered the phone and recognized me because of my foreign
accent…”Yes Mohammad, I am writing you an e-mail … congratulations, you
were granted…” I don’t remember if I said goodbye to her or not as I was
so excited that I could not talk … All of the efforts and time that I
spent over the years had paid off; my dreams were changing into reality;
it was a very delightful feeling. I hung up the phone and cleared the
tears from my eyes.
What
happened between spring 2001 and fall 2002
As
soon as the excitement of receiving the letter of acceptance cooled
down, I started to apply for a student VISA. Again the problem was that
there was no U.S. embassy in Iran and I had to travel abroad to get a
VISA. Although it was more costly, I decided to apply at the US embassy
in Ankara, Turkey instead of the U.A.E. The interview was short and easy
and they accepted my documents but they told me that because of my
nationality, I would have to wait until they get my security clearance
from Washington. The security check normally takes 4-6 weeks, they
added.
After
the interview, I went back to Iran happily and waited for 4 weeks; then
I called them weekly but my VISA was not ready even after 8 weeks. It
was very stressful for me to see that I had been accepted at UTMB and
the deadlines for fall registration were close, but my VISA was not
ready. So, I packed and said goodbye to my family and friends and went
to Turkey to stay at a hotel close to the embassy in order to get the
VISA the very next day after my security becomes clear. I stayed there
for another four weeks but my VISA was not ready…
It was
in the afternoon and I was watching C.N.N at my room in Elite hotel in
Ankara when that horrible attack of 9/11 occurred. “What is going on?”,
I asked myself. I was shocked. When the twin towers collapsed, I felt
like my dreams to study biomedical engineering were collapsing… The U.S.
embassy was closed… No chance to get VISA… I was certainly a victim of
the attack of 9/11, on a different level.
I
returned to Iran very disappointed. Everybody was asking me of my
situation and I did not know how to respond. After a while, I decided
not to ruin my future by waiting for a U.S. VISA anymore and applied for
similar positions in Europe. The application process to European
institutions was much easier than that of US. By February of 2002, I was
at Aarhus University (Aarhus, Denmark) to study for a Ph.D. in cell
physiology. I was quite happy with my position over there, but could not
forget my dreams about biomedical engineering.
Three
months after starting a Ph.D. program at Aarhus University, I received
an e-mail from the U.S. embassy informing me that my VISA was ready. Now
I had two choices: to stay at Aarhus University and become a cell
physiologist or to come to Galveston to become a biomedical engineer.
Because of my longstanding dreams, I decided to quit Aarhus University
and come to the U.S. to study biomedical engineering.
Thanks
to the cooperation of the GSBS and the department of cell physiology and
biophysics for issuing a new I-20, I was able to register for the BBSC
in the Fall of 2002.
The
First year at graduate school
I came
to Galveston in May 2002 and started to take research rotations until
August when I joined new students to register for the BBSC program in
fall 2002. I already had an M.D. degree and had passed a cell biology
course; thus I decided to take the place-out examination to test my
knowledge in this field. I was fortunate to be the only student in my
class who passed that exam and so dropped my cell biology course that
year. That success made me feel happy especially when I saw the response
of the faculty members at the cell biology program when I met them in
one of the welcome parties. By dropping the cell biology course,
biochemistry was my main course work during fall 2002.
The
biochemistry course was very exciting to me because it started with
thermodynamics and energy conversions; the topics that I remembered well
from medical school. I also liked the way Dr Thompson presented his
lectures. I was sitting in the first row of the auditorium all the time.
His open-book exam was also one of the best exams I have ever taken;
however, I made minor mistakes in that exam by going into unimportant
details and making the questions more complex.
During
the Fall semester, we had small group discussions every week as part of
the biochemistry course. I liked these sessions because there was a
chance for me to discuss topics that were presented that week. However,
sometimes the facilitators did not know the answer to our questions
-which was not a shame at all- but were trying to escape it by asking
another question. This made me nervous a few times. I believe “I don’t
know” is the best answer when we do not know the answer!!! It happened
three or four times that after discussing the questions with the
instructor, I got different answers from what I got from facilitators.
Thus, I believe it is very important to choose a facilitator for small
group discussions who has enough experience in that field.
The
other part of the biochemistry course was about nucleic acids which was
less interesting to me than the first part; however, I continued
following the lectures carefully and reading all the required materials.
The
worst parts of this course were the topics on enzyme kinetics. The way
the instructor presented the speed of reactions was totally different
from what I had learned in medical school. I was confused and it was
very hard for me to understand the new materials. It was amazing for me
to hear from other students that they had similar feelings but they
simply preferred to memorize the materials rather than understand them.
At first, I thought I could not do that and I had to find a way to
understand them, but I became disappointed very soon when I got no
response to my questions from the instructor by e-mail. After the third
time that he did not reply to my email, I stopped asking questions and
memorized the materials just to pass the exam. The exam of the last part
of the course was also strange; we had three to four hours to answer
questions and even this was not enough for many of us to finish it!!!
There was something wrong with that exam.
Despite my initial interests and the efforts I put into biochemistry, my
final score was a B. I was deeply sad and believed that I did not
deserve it.
Our
main course in spring semester was genetics. I was not interested in
this course and hesitated to sit in the front row as I used to do in
biochemistry. The score of B in biochemistry made me mute during the
genetics course. I did not ask any questions during lectures, nor did I
participate in the discussions in small groups, unless I was asked.
Because I did not actively participate in discussions, I hardly remember
the materials I memorized at that time. Talking to other students, I
found that an easy way to pass the exam was to find and memorize the
answers to the questions of the exam in previous years, as the questions
did not change. I didn’t know it until I saw other students memorizing
them. Although this method of studying was not right, I decided to
employ it for genetics. Surprisingly, at the end of the genetic course I
was granted an A. It was very strange for me to see that several
questions in the exams were copied from that in last year. If we assume
that the main goals for taking an exam at the end of courses are to
encourage students to study the materials and also to evaluate them
based on their knowledge, then none of these goals can be achieved by
repeating questions verbatim from prior exams.
First
year graduate students are supposed to do research rotations in at least
three laboratories in order to become familiar with different research
projects before joining any of them permanently. Despite the fact that I
knew from the beginning which laboratory I was going to attend, I had to
take two additional laboratory rotations during my first year.
My
first rotation was very productive, as I learned many techniques that
are used in cell biology, but I had never used before. My second
rotation, however, was different because of a fourth-year graduate
student in that lab who wanted to tell me what to do. To be honest, I
did not like it when I noticed that he was even keeping track of my
arrival time in the lab. But very soon, I impressed him with my
interests and sincerity and so we became good friends and I learned a
lot from him during that rotation.
After
completing these rotations, I came back to my original laboratory to
take the third mandatory rotation and comply with the regulations. I
made a rule for myself at that time to do my best to show everybody that
I am very eager to learn and am not afraid of working hard. This is the
key to having a friendly relationship with other staff in the lab.
I like my current research project because it is all about what I love
to learn; in addition, my supervisor allowed me to actively participate
in that project from the very beginning stages of writing the grant
proposal to designing and conducting the experiments to the stage of
reporting the results.
The other thing that I like about my current job is that we are working
in a unique group of scientists from different countries; i.e. Russia,
Germany, China, Mongolia, Iran, and Belarus. My supervisor is so kind to
me that sometimes I feel like he is my big brother rather than my
supervisor.
Taking
the qualifying exam
During
the second year, students are supposed to pass a qualifying exam which
is designed by a committee inside each department. Regardless of its
form, taking an exam is stressful for any student and the qualifying
exam is not an exception. Being over 30 years old I have lost my
capability to memorize material but have earned the knowledge and skills
required to analyze them. Thank God, the qualifying exam was in the form
of a take home exam in our department. However, the regulations for the
qualifying exam were changed recently and I was the first student who
was taking it under the new regulations. The committee gave me a
hypothesis and a one-week deadline to design an experiment to test that
hypothesis and write a 10 page grant proposal. Additionally, I was
supposed to present and defend those answers in front of the committee
members the next week.
After
receiving the question by e-mail, I carefully read it several times and
then started to think and search the literature to learn more about that
subject. I guess one of the most important strategies in such a
situation is not to jump in to writing until you have a clear
understanding of both the question and your proposed answer. Thus, I
continued reading and thinking until the very last night when I started
to write down my ideas. I was working that night until 6AM the next
morning!!
The
verbal part of the exam was much more stressful to me than the written
part. Although I started my presentation quite calm, the condition
changed when committee members started to ask me questions that were
hardly related to my written part. I became nervous but attempted to
answer them to the best of my knowledge. At the end, I was worried about
my performance in the exam. They sent me out of the room to discuss my
final score; after ten minutes, my supervisor called me in and
congratulated me for passing the exam with an overall score of 97%.
I
heard from my supervisor that because of my nervousness at the end of
the exam, I was interrupting people to answer their question before they
finished their sentence; he advised me to be more patient next time and
listen to their question through to the end before starting to answer
it.
Plans
for the future
It may
be too ambitious for a graduate student to finish his Ph.D. program in
less than four years, but I will work hard to do that. My supervisor and
I believe that combining my knowledge in medicine with that of basic
science, which I will achieve during my studies as a graduate student,
will enable me to conduct multi-disciplinary research in future. Because
of that, I will probably apply for a post-doctoral position in molecular
imaging, which is my field of interest, as soon as I finish my current
Ph.D. program. Having both publications and Post-doctoral experience
will strengthen my resume to get an academic position in the future.
Third year graduate
student
Center for Biomedical Engineering
The University of Texas Medical Branch
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 My
initial interest in applying and attending
graduate school began with my desire to further
my understanding of biological processes. For my
undergraduate education, I attended a small
liberal arts university allowing me the
opportunity to establish a firm foundation in
biology. My investigation into the career
opportunities of science revealed to me I could
take one of two roads. I could attend medical
school and take the road more traveled at my
university or I could try a new less traveled
road represented by graduate school. I chose
graduate school because it offered me a
challenge and an opportunity to pursue my
overall interest of understanding and further
characterizing the underpinnings of human
physiology and pathophysiology. My initial
choice to study pharmacology was fostered by my
undergraduate mentor who gave me invaluable
information on how to apply and choose a
graduate school. Upon choosing to attend
graduate school, I decided to pursue a Ph.D.
instead of a Masters Degree with the goal to
become an independent researcher in charge of my
own laboratory.
When applying to graduate school I applied to
multiple schools in Texas based on my general
interest of pharmacology. My final decision to
attend UTMB was based on my interview with the
faculty in the Department of Pharmacology and
Toxicology and the GSBS. One of my deciding
factors was that the BBSC gave students the
freedom to choose their department and mentor
after they had experienced the laboratories
during rotations. Another key factor in my
decision was the open door policy that many of
the faculty in pharmacology presented to me on
my interview. I was naïve of the research
environment, so the openness and friendliness of
the faculty was important in my decision to
attend UTMB and future success at UTMB. The
interview process at UTMB was similar to other
schools that I applied to in that it involved
interactions both with students and faculty. I
believe the interview process was helpful in not
only allowing the faculty to evaluate my
qualifications and learn my interests but also
allowed me the opportunity to determine which
faculty’s laboratories I should pursue further
and which ones I should avoid. Additional
beneficial part of the interview process was the
numerous interactions with current graduate
students. These interactions at meals and in
small groups allowed me to gather information
pertinent to the educational pro and cons of
UTMB and general information on life in
Galveston. One main difference between my
interview at UTMB and the other schools I
applied to is that at the time of my visit to
UTMB I had not been previously accepted. My
visit to UTMB was the last of the schools I
interviewed at so after weighing the pros and
cons I decided on UTMB. After receiving the
acceptance letter from UTMB I experienced a
sense of elation and relief that the process had
been successful.
When I arrived to UTMB and started my classes I
was fearful of the difficulty of the curriculum.
My initial anxiety resided after taking my first
couple of tests. The first year curriculum
allowed me to expand on the knowledge I obtained
from my undergraduate education. The team
teaching approach gave me the opportunity to
learn from experts of the field and be
introduced to new faculty and the focus of their
laboratories. One positive was that the courses
focused on learning the basic principles instead
of focusing too much on the details. This
knowledge of basic biological principles helped
me with my 2nd year pharmacology
classes and the design and execution of my
research project. The only major disappointment
I experienced with the 1st year
coursework was the BBSC modules. In my year the
modules were in their early state of development
so the breadth and depth of the modules were
lacking in some cases. I know these have since
been changed showing that UTMB is willing to
listen and adapt the coursework to meet the
needs of the students.
I chose the Department of Pharmacology based on
expertise of the department in my two interests
of drug discovery/characterization and the
central nervous system. However, I found that
the departmental curriculum was too condensed.
Pharmacology provides a vast, intricate, and
difficult field of study. The field requires
students to learn human physiology in
combination with how the drugs work on the
different systems and disease states of the
human body. This means students miss out on the
proper breadth and depth necessary to adequately
understand the field of pharmacology due to the
condensed nature of the courses. Once again, the
input of the students was taken into account and
appropriate changes have been made to better the
curriculum.
My choice for my first rotation was based on my
interest in neuropharmacology. When I came to
UTMB I had only a small amount of previous
experience. After an initial talk with my
current mentor, I felt he would provide me with
the training and support that I would need in my
first extensive laboratory experiences.
Following my first rotation, I had decided that
I would stay in the laboratory. Based on this I
designed my second rotation to learn advanced
techniques to use on my research project. I
believe being upfront with the professors you
are doing rotations with is essential. I
originally planned to do three rotations but
decided to remain in my second rotation for an
extra eight weeks. The person I was going to do
my third rotation with was very understanding
and preferred I stayed in laboratory where I
could gain the most information.
In the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology
the qualifying examinations are administered in
the spring of the 2nd year. Upon
completion of my qualifying exams, my mentor
encouraged me to apply for a predoctoral
fellowship from NIH to acquire my own source of
funding. The application date for the grant fell
in December so I set up my proposal to coincide
with the grant due date. I feel this approach
allowed me to gain invaluable experience in
grant writing. Following my admittance to
candidacy I felt a load off my shoulders. This
event marked my transition to be fully devoted
to my research project, which is a significant
accomplishment in the career of graduate
students.
Currently I have begun my fourth year of
graduate school and have been admitted to
candidacy for almost one year. My experiences in
the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology
have been positive. The faculty in Department of
Pharmacology and Toxicology are all willing to
help in any way they can. The faculty in the
department provides students not only help with
required coursework but with other invaluable
skills such as grant writing and critiquing
papers. I have realized help and advice comes
from new assistant professors up to the
chairman. The chairman of the department is very
student oriented and very concerned with the
success and proper progression of graduate
students through their graduate careers. This
concern can be found through all positions and
levels in the department. The support staff of
the department provides an important resource
for graduate students. I have found the
administrative staff to be key players in
helping with the small things that sometimes go
overlooked in the everyday life of a graduate
student. For instance, the administrative staff
supplies help with tasks like scheduling,
travel, and grant submission. Although these
tasks may be overlooked they are key to the
success of most graduate students and should be
utilized as much as possible.
I had very limited experience in the laboratory
before entering my first laboratory rotation at
UTMB. I chose my mentor based on his willingness
to sit down and walk me through the early
learning process necessary to become a
productive laboratory member. My mentor was a
relatively new when I came to UTMB so he still
spent a good amount of time in the laboratory.
His presence in the laboratory afforded me the
valuable hands on teaching necessary for
learning a rather challenging technique. Without
his tutelage I feel I would have struggled in my
initial introduction to bench science. This
approach to learning the in and outs of the
laboratory allowed me the opportunity to
gradually progress into understanding how to
become an independent researcher. I believe the
hallmark of a graduate education is the ability
to become an independent thinker and researcher.
In order to progress into an independent
scientist it is important for graduate students
to take away as many skills as they can while
they are in graduate school. I try to seek out
every possibility available to enhance my
knowledge of my chosen field and tips for
becoming a better scientist. Along with my
mentor my committee members have been crucial in
guiding my scientific career at UTMB. The
committee members play a pivotal role by
providing an extra voice in your graduate school
education. My committee has given me key advice
on the design and execution of my dissertation
project. The members of the committee are an
excellent resource and probably are underused.
Overall, my experience to this point in my
laboratory has been uniformly positive. The
guidance I have received so far I feel has
provided me with the skills necessary to succeed
as an independent researcher.
Outside of the department and laboratory I made
many key contacts with other faculty and
students. My faculty contacts outside of our
laboratory supplied me with techniques
previously unavailable in our laboratory. I
found collaborations both inside and outside our
laboratory to be very rewarding. Through
collaborations, I was able to obtain three
publications that would not have been possible
without making these key contacts. I would
strongly encourage students to pursue as many
contacts and collaborations as they can during
their stay at UTMB. These contacts facilitate
the process of finding a job and future
networking at scientific meetings. I have
attended scientific meetings annually which are
instrumental in the development of my career.
The scientific meetings afford me the chance to
investigate new ideas in the field and network
with researchers in my field.
My experiences during my time at UTMB have
supplied me the skills to succeed as an
independent researcher. My original plans upon
entering UTMB were to pursue a career in
industry performing pharmaceutical research. I
have changed my plans now to include a career in
the clinical arena. I now would prefer to pursue
a career involving hands on experience with
patients utilizing the information gained from
the bench and applying it to clinical research.
I am still not completely decided on my exact
future plans. Options I plan to explore include
obtaining further education in a medical related
field and/or pursuing a job working in clinical
trials.
If I could go back and change my decisions
coming out college I would still happily make
the same decision to attend graduate school.
Even though there are many peaks and valleys
with science, the peaks outweigh the valleys. I
believe the skills and information I have
obtained at UTMB will play a pivotal role in my
future. Graduate level education has given me
the ability to think and work more independently
while still playing a leadership role. In
addition, it has supplied me with communication
and thought process skills that are applicable
in most aspects of life.
James
Sanders
Tarleton State University
25 years old
Male
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 As
I am sure has been the motivation for many who have entered the field,
science has always seemed to come naturally to me. I’ve coasted through
class work and major concepts because things simply made sense.
Fortunately my “que sera sera” attitude has served me well in my choices
of career and education. Declaring that my major was biochemistry as an
undergraduate was the easy part, stating vague intentions to enter
medical school was due to my own naiveté. Threats of disownment from my
mother and the realization that medical doctors are merely
diagnosticians, not people who fashion cures for illness, helped me to
realize that the wonderful academic environment that I was immersed in
was created by people with PhDs.
The
instinctual approach to science that I mentioned earlier made me skip
over the template for drawing the possible conformations of a molecule
and its accompanying energy diagram on my first Organic chemistry exam,
and although I completed the problem, I did so backwards. I also
received zero points from the TA. The professor was impressed and amused
when I approached him, and from that point on I was lucky enough to have
stumbled across an undergraduate mentor. He encouraged me to apply and
accept a position conducting research during the summer of my second
year. He also gave me a great deal of freedom in designing labs and
tinkering with analytical equipment as I progressed into my third and
fourth years. Having worked in industry and academia himself, he helped
me find the scientific path that fit me.
Following the completion of my bachelors’ degree I spent a disastrous
two months working at a private environmental analysis firm, and a
pleasant year teaching in a local high school. All to find that I didn’t
want to do any of these things when I grew up. I had already
decided that I needed an advanced degree in the sciences, but industry
wasn’t for me, I wanted to find new things simply because I found them
interesting. Likewise academia did not inspire me as it would require me
to divide my time between teaching, administrating, and researching; all
of which I would want to do to the absolute best of my ability, and in
my mind would necessitate near exclusivity. While I toyed with the idea
of a masters, I let application deadlines pass me by and decided that
the intermediate wouldn’t get me to the point that I would have some
independence in my research, not to mention that I would be paying my
own way. Although the doctoral stipend is modest, it is manageable, and
much preferable to no income at all.
So I started applying to graduate schools for a doctorate.
UTMB was one of the universities that sent me information based on the
release of GRE scores. I pulled it back out of the pile when I started
looking for places that were doing research in gene therapy and my
computer searches had revealed that it could be found down here. I
applied to UTMB, the University of Colorado, and the University of
Pennsylvania. In the meantime, Jesse Gelsinger had died during a gene
therapy trial at UPenn, and was firmly scratched off the list. I knew
enough to realize that their funding would be a mess for years to come.
UTMB was my first and friendliest interview. Not only was I flown
down first class, but I also had a room to myself in an exquisite hotel.
It would have been shallow to decide to attend UTMB based on
accommodations, but it was the sentiment that went behind the extra
effort, and the kindness that everyone showed while I was here that
didn’t appear to be rehearsed, but inherent.
I was sure that I was making the right choice when I was called by a
professor in the department that I was most interested in, who informed
me of my acceptance, before ever having received a letter.
There
are some things that I regret not being told during the interview
process because they made it difficult for me to find a lab to call
home. While I was interviewing I had wanted to meet with Drs. Brian
Davis and David Brown, both of whom were doing research on gene therapy.
Rather than listening to a current student who told me that he
originally had wanted to do gene therapy, but couldn’t find it here, I
let the professors reassure me that Drs. Davis and Brown had scheduling
conflicts. In actuality, neither of them was accepting graduate
students, but were building their own companies, and were on the brink
of leaving UTMB. Suffice it to say that I couldn’t imagine being happier
in another lab, but my rotations forced me to accept that gene therapy
was simply a technique, and might not be available as a research project
here at UTMB.
What really sold me on the school though was the integrated first year
curriculum.
Although I had a strong background in biochemistry, I expected that
graduate school coursework would be rigorous and demanding, and felt
that I might need some leveling out time that the BBSC at UTMB looked to
be able to provide. I was also leery of making a decision about a
department sight unseen. I secretly feared being stuck in a place where
you never saw more than the five or so faces of the other students
pursuing degrees in similar topics and that the department might
encourage the locking of graduate students in the lab closet. While I am
still happy with my first year of classes I am disappointed in the depth
and breadth of the knowledge base. There were minor details, such as the
names of certain signaling molecules and polymerases, but all in all no
major additions to the information I had gained in college. I found that
the most challenging portion of the coursework dealt with deadlines and
time management, not content. And rather than providing highly specific
information, the modules fell short due to time constraints, poor
organization, overlapping material, and limited topic selections. I can
see how it is impossible to please everyone and the course design was a
necessity considering the diverse background of the incoming students.
The range of experiences that my classmates brought with them was a
bonus, but the watered down science was a disappointment. I almost wish
that it were possible to target those students who may face problems,
due to limited exposure to the advanced sciences, and require them to
arrive a month earlier for an intensive workshop whose purpose was to
bring them up to speed.
On the
matter of selecting a department Dr. Blankenship set my mind at ease.
Addressing a gathering of the first year students he had said that “if
you want a particular kind of research here, you can find it in any
department, or we’ll put it there for you”. He also said that choosing
your department was often a gut decision. This affirmed my feeling that
BMB was the best fit for me. The classes once I entered the department
were better, but rushed. Truly, the knowledge acquired during your Ph.D.
is earned through your own motivation to learn the background of your
field and aided by the skills that were honed over my first two years
here. Most importantly, the department classes taught me habits that
have served me well in writing, and critically evaluating experiments
and papers. This is of course not a practice that can be learned only
through reading and writing, but requires quite a bit of hands on
experience as well. Three of my four lab rotations taught me more than
anything, what not to do. I knew that I would need to complete at least
three to find my permanent home, but I was lucky enough to find the lab
that I am currently in on the first try. I was also spoiled, and no
other lab afterwards would do, but funding was an issue. I had to do a
fourth rotation, stalling for time, with my fingers crossed, hoping that
a grant would come through, but also having to seriously think about
trying to carve a gene therapy project out of another lab. Unfortunately
I was left with few options; the mentor-student relationship that I
wanted was here, but temporarily unavailable. It does not do my ideal
concept of a mentor-student relationship justice to say that I wanted a
mentor who was very hands-on, but I suppose that is the core of the
success that I found in the Chan lab. All I can say is that people in
science, myself included, are stranger than I originally thought, and
despite the fact that I feel like I could make do in a less than ideal
situation, all of my other rotations were too far below the “less than
ideal” bar. Just as I have not once questioned my belonging in graduate
school, I have not questioned my choice of lab when I was able to join
my first pick in late November of my second year.
In
fact, when I received the e-mail that the lab could take me, I was so
excited that I e-mailed all my friends and called my parents. And I was
doubly lucky, the grant that would fund my work was shared between
Teh-sheng Chan and his wife Lillian, so I too, would be shared. I truly
cherish the guidance that I receive from this phenomenal team. Because
Lillian plays such a large role in the program we often discuss current
issues. I’m flattered that my opinions are valued inside and outside the
lab environment. My mentors are not only good scientists; they are good,
courteous, conscientious people. This, more than anything, allows me to
maintain a firm grasp on my belief that science is a joy during the
rough patches, and makes the good days, great.
Much
of the first few months in lab were taken up with department qualifiers;
reviewing course work for the open book, two-day exam; and preparing my
proposal for the oral. I refer to it as the “jumping through flaming
hoops” period. Everyone involved including myself, my mentors and the
university, have invested a great deal of time and money into my
development as a graduate student. As such, I think that it would be a
rare occasion to not pass the qualifiers, but it was time intensive. I
was frankly more relieved than excited to have it behind me when I was
admitted to candidacy.
My
experiments have recently taken a turn for the better and my mentors and
I have all realized there is an end in sight. I’m ready to launch my
animal experiments. They will take a little less than a year, at which
point I can begin writing my thesis. I’m excited to go to committee
again and show them the progress I have made in the last year. I have
only had one update meeting with them since my oral proposal. They are a
very helpful, intelligent, knowledgeable group. I wouldn’t change a
single member of my committee, but I had to realize at our last meeting
that I couldn’t simply update them. It was disappointing to realize that
no one had glanced through my original research plan before they came to
the meeting. It’s not that I expected their worlds to revolve around my
progress, but they hadn’t done an ounce of homework. As such, they are
longer meetings than I would like because I need to reintroduce the
background, but the meetings themselves are not highly stressful.
The
only tangible, and unavoidable, drawback to graduate studies so far are
my lack of publications. Sometimes when I look at my classmates who are
publishing I feel discouraged. Yet, I know that I wouldn’t be happy with
another project, and the nature of this project does not lend itself to
publication along the way. I have what I feel will be one, huge paper at
the end of my experiments. It will tell a wonderful and complete story,
and I am proud of that. But, I believe that it has prevented me from
receiving my own funding. It worries me that funding and awards will not
be an obtainable possibility until my experiments are all but complete.
If this really is the case outside of this small realm of research; the
implications that it has on finding funding when I am on my own and
trying to launch a new project are daunting. However, this is a
milestone that I know I will overcome should I encounter it. I cannot
foresee being better prepared somewhere other than UTMB. I have
blossomed personally and professionally here. I can only hope that my
confidence in my future success is realized.
Undergraduate Institution: Canisius College; Buffalo, NY
Age:
27
Gender: Female
Nationality: USA
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 When
I was eleven I went on my first snow skiing trip to Colorado. It was
amazing. 10,000 ft. tall mountains covered with snow. For a Southerner,
it was a world away from 70˚ Decembers and hot sticky summers. For the
next 15 years I would go back every chance I had. I’d go in the winter
for skiing or in the summer for hiking and camping. I loved the
mountains in the winter and the summers felt like heaven on earth:
crisp, clean air and huge blue skies. Every time I visited, I promised
myself that I would move there some day. That opportunity finally
presented itself four years ago when I was deciding on graduate schools
to get a Ph.D. It was everything I had worked so hard to achieve: a
great Ph.D. program in the perfect location. Fast forward four years
later… This morning I woke up, broke a sweat on the way to my car,
killed a mosquito or two that flew in the car with me, and drove
forty-five minutes on I-45 from Houston to Galveston. Later that
afternoon I did the same thing, just in the reverse order.
When I
accepted an invitation to do my graduate studies at the University of
Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) I did not foresee the two hour commute back
and forth on the “scenic” Gulf Freeway. My fiancé and I thought that
finding a teaching job on the island would not be a problem. Three
months after she moved to Galveston, she finally found one… in Houston.
Nor did I appreciate the magnitude of the phrase “one hundred percent
humidity” or “hurricane evacuation route”. Indeed, I admit that I was at
once lured by the idea of living on an island with 30 miles of beaches,
swimming in the surf, and sipping frozen drinks on the weekends. But it
was not for the sun and sand that I gave up my chance to live on
Mountain Time, and it has not been the allure of island life that has
maintained my peace of mind.
For the uninitiated, let me just say that UTMB has one of the largest
groups of tropical and emerging infectious disease scientists at any
university in the United States, perhaps the world. Behind this critical
mass of researchers follows millions of dollars of funding, decades of
expertise, and lots and lots of viruses (the kind you study of course).
When I began my search for places to get my Ph.D. the search included
some very well-respected universities. The name UTMB was new to me, but
the reputation of the scientists working there were not.
It took little encouragement from faculty members at the university
where I did my masters degree to decide to apply. When I got around to
looking for initial faculty contacts I was surprised to find out how
many people were doing exactly the type of research that I was
interested in. After sending out a few letters to faculty, I immediately
realized what all the fuss was about. Everyone had great projects,
plenty of lab space, and long-term grant support that would secure
funding of student stipends. A quick database search for research
publications of the faculty members made it even clearer that UTMB had
established itself as a major player in the study of infectious disease.
While the same could be said for many of the other universities for
which I applied, the research productivity, grant support, resources,
and personnel just didn’t add up to that put on the table by UTMB.
My
first visit to the island really sealed the deal. After being flown in
and put up at a very nice hotel, what impressed me most about the
university was talking with all of the people whose research efforts I
had been hearing about. The interview process was a breath of fresh air
after being invited to universities by a single person for a single
interview and for a single laboratory position. This was certainly not
the case as I learned more about UTMB’s unique first year Basic
Biomedical Science Curriculum (BBSC) and the opportunity to do lab
rotations with many different mentors and in many different departments.
The single greatest asset to the Graduate School of Biomedical Science
(GSBS) is the fact that each student is brought into the University by
an overarching authority, rather than a single department or much less a
single person. This gives students the freedom to choose from a number
of faculty mentors. When traveling to UTMB for the first time, I was
under no pressure to meet a single person with whom I would spend the
next several years working under. At UTMB you have the opportunity to
meet many people with whom you may work for, and best of all, you have a
choice in the matter. So when I found out that I had been accepted to
UTMB it did not take much reflection to make a decision about where I
would spend the next several years of my life. Colorado would have to
wait.
The
first year in the BBSC was difficult. Having not had courses in
Biochemistry and very little Molecular Genetics, I was especially
stressed by the work load. Help from students that had backgrounds in
these courses and from faculty and tutors made the classes bearable. I
was very focused on doing research in arthropod-borne virus studies so
the integrative BBSC curriculum did not change my perspective on what I
wanted to study, but it did broaden my outlook on the many different
approaches that one might take to study those types of viruses. I
ultimately chose the Department of Pathology because I really wanted to
study infectious diseases and the Experimental Pathology program is one
of the truly unique graduate programs for the study of tropical and
emerging diseases. I really enjoyed the personnel in the department as
well. The students and postdocs were very hard-working, the faculty very
accomplished, and the administrators extremely helpful. The curriculum
of the department was good because it gave me the freedom to choose the
courses that I wanted to take rather than having all the courses
selected by the department. While of course some courses were mandatory,
the department placed a lot of emphasis on elective courses. This way I
could take courses offered by other departments and not be constrained
by being “forced” to take classes that I had already taken or didn’t
feel that I needed to take.
Choosing rotations was a very natural experience for me. Because of my
master’s degree background, I knew that I wanted to study vector-borne
viruses. For most of the universities that I had considered, this would
have meant choosing from three or four labs. But at UTMB this meant
having a choice to rotate through as many as ten different labs. Because
of this special scenario, the rotations meant not so much having to do
decide what I wanted to do my dissertation studies on, but which lab I
felt the most at home in. Again, because the GSBS was paying my first
year stipend I was free to try many different labs and never felt
pressure from any single mentor to choose their lab. I knew I was
looking for a mentor that had a track record of productivity and who was
motivated, but I also wanted someone that had a “laid-back” personality.
I really wanted to find someone that I felt comfortable being around. It
was also important that I found someone that would be open to my ideas,
but that had several on-going projects that were of interest to me so
that I could jump into an existing project and then run with my own
ideas about how to make it a success. Fortunately for me, I had no
trouble finding this person and I don’t think this was a problem for
many students.
One of
the exceptional traits of my mentor was his ability to put my priorities
above his own. This became apparent as I began the process of applying
for candidacy. My mentor made sure that I had enough time away from the
lab to complete my course work and to do well on the qualifying exams.
Although they were stressful, my mentor was always behind me and took
the time to make sure that I was not too stressed-out by the process.
After the qualifying exams were over, my mentor took the time to help me
pick my committee members and to help in the preparation of my
dissertation proposal. He really pushed me to finish this process as
early as possible and encouraged me to publish my first paper before
entering candidacy so that it would be clear to my committee that I was
ready to begin my dissertation research phase. Not only was my mentor
helpful in this regard, but the program director was also very
supportive in terms of stress management and prioritizing my efforts.
Other faculty members also lent a hand whenever possible. This feeling
of encouragement and motivation from my mentor and other faculty has
been evident during the course of my dissertation studies as well, and
now that I have begun to focus solely on my dissertation research I am
thankful of the flexibility that I was afforded during the first two
years of my graduate studies. I have also been impressed by the
availability of intramural grant opportunities from the University. My
mentor and other faculty have been extremely helpful in helping me to
write, apply for, and acquire several of those grants. They have also
been very supportive and understanding of the importance of traveling to
conferences to present my research and to network with scientists
outside of UTMB. I have also been very satisfied by the resources
available to me, not only in the lab, but also in the department, and
university as a whole. I would also note that the experience and
technical skills of the postdocs at UTMB are exceptional and are an
integral part of the research machinery at the University.
When I
decided to become a scientist, in particular one interested in public
health and infectious disease research, I did not fully appreciate the
dedication that people have for this field. All of the faculty that I
have come into contact with instill their own spirit of motivation and
tireless work ethic into the students around them and make coming to
work every day a more meaningful experience. The work environment is
also refreshing. In the lab that I work in, we have people representing
at least six different countries of origin. This encourages a level of
social awareness that I did not always consider. I was suddenly
introduced to a world of people and perspectives that were new and
different, and at once interesting and inspirational. I began to realize
the importance of exploring diversity as a means of not only enriching
day to day life, but also gaining knowledge. I think this is really a
prerequisite for the study of health science. As we are too often
reminded, public health care problems are rarely resolved by the
initiative of a single entity. In dealing with health care dilemmas, at
either a local or global scale, partnerships between a number of
disciplines, organizations, and most assuredly, a diverse group of
people are essential. As a Ph.D. student in an infectious disease
laboratory with co-workers from a variety of backgrounds, I‘ve come to
understand the significance of working in a diverse environment. It has
taught me the importance of research collaboration when addressing
problems related to the spread and prevention of infectious diseases and
has allowed me to make contacts with researchers from all over the world
with whom I hope to sustain relationships with in the future.
Now
that my graduate studies are coming to a close, the drive to and from
Galveston reminds me of the reasons why I chose to come to UTMB in the
first place and the reasons why I would recommend the university to
anyone. Not only has the research experience been all I had hoped it
would be, but the friends and colleagues that I have made will
definitely be an attribute to my future life both personally and
professionally. As I begin my search for places to do postdoctoral
studies, I feel confident that I am prepared to take on research
projects in many different fields of infectious disease and that I will
be a valuable asset to any lab. Several students and postdocs that have
left my lab have been able to find outstanding postdoctoral and faculty
positions and have been heavily recruited because of their experience
gained at UTMB. As the reputation the University flourishes, I have no
doubt that I will be marketable as a researcher in the coming years.
While I don’t think I will miss life on the island (and definitely not
rush hour traffic on I-45) I will certainly miss the work environment
and the people that make UTMB a truly unique university.
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