I got to hang out, virtually, with Dr Jocelyn Pearl of the Lady Scientist Podcast team. We talked mostly about my career journey, from almost leaving science during a TOEFL teaching stint to South Korea, to founding a biotech company during a pandemic.
I especially liked this theme because it gave me an opportunity to share some of the personal story behind where I am now, which has been anything but a straight shot. At this time 10 years ago, I had just repatriated to the States, moved back in with my parents at the age of 24, and was sending 100s of job applications to any and all research associate positions in the Boston area, desperate to find a job.
It’s okay not to have it all figured out as an undergrad student (or even a grad!) and to take some time to find what it is you love doing — for me, I can’t imagine doing any job other than science, but I certainly didn’t feel that way as a post-bacc until I had tried a few other things.
Lindsay K. Pino 