When I was a junior in college I was working in an analytical chemistry group anticipating pursuing my graduate degree in the field. A few years later, and I am now a Ph.D. candidate in nuclear chemistry at Texas A&M University. How did my career path change so dramatically in such a short amount of time? While looking for a summer job, I came across an advertisement for the Nuclear Chemistry Summer School (NCSS) funded by the DOE. Although I knew nothing about the subject or any previous participants, I was very intrigued to try something new and exciting so I applied. A few months later, I was a part of NCSS’s Class of 2019. Although the coursework was quite intensive throughout the summer, the connections we made with each other and all of the visiting scientists were equally as valuable. The fall of my senior year, I completely changed research groups to begin my journey down a new path and began applying to many nuclear chemistry graduate programs. Through visiting with the amazing scientists at NCSS and hearing about their research activities, I had a general understanding of what I might be interested in when visiting these programs and preparing my applications. I then ultimately decided to pursue nuclear chemistry for graduate school under the guidance of Dr. Sherry Yennello at Texas A&M University, whom I met during NCSS. Since beginning this new chapter, I have made numerous, invaluable connections within the community. I am also making my own scientific contributions by pursuing research in isotope production for the advancement of cancer treatments using targeted alpha therapy (TAT). This new journey, although sudden, has been extremely rewarding thus far, and I look forward to my future career, inspired by the mentorship of Trish Baisden during my time at NCSS.

Nuclear chemistry summer school: A surprising new journey towards a rewarding career

Where thousands of chemistry professionals meet to share ideas and advance scientific and technical knowledge. Spring 2023 abstracts, posters, and presentations will launch at the end of March.

ACS Spring 2023

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.