Alumni Aloud

Melissa Wansin Wong received her PhD from the Theatre and Performance program at the Graduate Center. She is now the Director of Institutional Relations at the Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA) in New York City. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Melissa tells us about her path into the nonprofit world, finding a work culture that fits you, and the benefits of identifying mentors outside of academ...

Brooke Bryant received her PhD from the Graduate Center’s Musicology Program. She is now Director of Development at the Kaufman Music Center. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Brooke talks to us about what it means to work in development, the skillsets graduates have that can help them pivot into the field, and what some of the best practices are for activating your network. This episode’s intervie...

Charlotte Gartenberg received her PhD from the Graduate Center’s Latin American, Iberian, and Latino Cultures (LAILAC) program. She is now a freelance writer, editor, translator, and podcast producer based in New York City. She is the executive producer of Get the News with Gretchen Carlson. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Charlotte talks about her experiences as a freelancer and discusses how sh...

Eric Knudsen earned his PhD in Industrial and Organizational Psychology at the Graduate Center and is now a Lead Researcher at LinkedIn. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Eric Knudsen talks to us about how he uses data to help people find fulfilling work and companies improve their employees’ experiences. He also discusses the importance of following up with employers during the hiring process and...

Lauren Reches earned her PhD in French from the Graduate Center. Her dissertation focused on regional French gastronomy in the early 20th century. She is currently the National Sales Director at Skurnik Wine & Spirits, an alcohol import and distribution company headquartered in NYC. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Lauren tells us about finishing her dissertation while beginning a career. She also...

Kyle O’Donnell received her Master’s in Linguistics from the Graduate Center. She now works as an Intelligent Virtual Assistant (IVA) Analyst at Synchrony, a consumer financial services company. Kyle also previously worked on Amazon Alexa as a data process expert. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Kyle tells us about the power of articulating your transferable skills, the intersection of linguistic...

This is a special edition of Alumni Aloud that was recorded at our virtual STEM Postdocs panel in April 2020. Our panelists are Kriti Kalpana and Deepak Menon, who both earned their PhDs in Biochemistry at the GC, and Miruna Ghinia Tegla, who earned her PhD in Biology at Babeș-Bolyai University in Romania. At the time of the panel, Kriti was a postdoc at the New York Stem Cell Foundation Research...

Kathleen Wallace earned her AuD in Audiology from the Graduate Center. She is now a clinical audiologist at the New York Otolaryngology Group and an adjunct assistant professor at the Graduate Center. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Kathleen shares what it's like to work in a clinical field. She also talks about the importance of networking and the many career paths audiology graduates might take...

This is a special edition of Alumni Aloud that was recorded live at our Careers in Nonprofit Research panel in October 2019. Two of our panelists, Samuel T. Frank (PhD Earth & Environmental Sciences) and Eli Lansey (PhD Physics), are alumni of the Graduate Center. Our third panelist, Laura Ricciardi (PhD Applied Developmental Psychology), is a graduate of Fordham University. At the time of this re...

Uday Madaan earned his PhD in Biology from the Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental subprogram at the Graduate Center. Uday is a Scientific Sales Representative in Cell Media at STEMCELL Technologies. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Uday tells us about how interviewing and hiring processes differ between academia and industry. He also discusses the transferable skills from grad school that tran...

Anna Palsteva is a researcher at the NYC Urban Soils Institute where she studies soil contamination and remediation. She also teaches at Brooklyn College, New York University, New York Botanical Gardens, and Brooklyn Botanical Gardens. She graduated from the PhD Program in Earth and Environmental Science at the Graduate Center. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, we learn how Anna is cultivating a na...

Antonios Papaioannou is an Application Scientist at Bruker BioSpin, a magnetic resonance and preclinical imaging instrumentation company. Bruker is based out of Millerica, MA, but Antonios works at the BioSpin office in Rheinstetten, Germany. He earned his PhD in Physics from the Graduate Center. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Antonios tells us about searching and applying for jobs international...

Miguel Briones is a Senior Medical Writer at the BGB Group, a medical communications agency based in New York City. He earned his PhD in Psychology from the Behavioral & Cognitive Neuroscience subprogram at the Graduate Center. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Miguel tells us about his experiences in data science and medical writing. He discusses how medical writers work with other companies in th...

Leighann Starkey is a graduate of the PhD Program in Psychology, with a specialization in developmental psychology, at the Graduate Center. She is now Director of Evaluation at Education Through Music. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Leighann explains what evaluation at a nonprofit looks like and provides advice on how to find a nonprofit you would want to work for. She also shares her personal e...

Natalia Ortiz is Director of Programs at the Center for Racial Justice in Education, a nonprofit based out of New York City. She earned her PhD in Urban Education at the Graduate Center. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Natalia walks us through her process of applying to the PhD program while being a full-time public school teacher, transitioning to new work while finishing her dissertation, and m...

Suzie Housley is an alum of the Graduate Center's PhD Program in Earth and Environmental Science. She is a subject matter expert at StormSensor, a water infrastructure tech company. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Suzie details her interdisciplinary approach to work and how she found a perfect professional fit for her skills and interests. She also discusses the logistics of working remotely and...

James Lendemer graduated from the PhD Program in Biology at the Graduate Center with a concentration in plant sciences. He is Assistant Curator at the New York Botanical Garden and Assistant Professor at the Graduate Center. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, James tells us about working on his own projects at a large research and conservation institution, the importance of collaboration, and how li...

Naomi Schear graduated with her PhD in Social Welfare from the Graduate Center. She is Assistant Commissioner of Policy and Planning in the Division of Child and Family Well-Being at the NYC Administration for Children's Services. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Naomi talks about creating and implementing policies in New York City agencies and how her research informs her work. She also offers ad...

Julie Viollaz graduated with her PhD in Criminal Justice from the Graduate Center. She is a wildlife crime researcher at the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime in Vienna, Austria. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Julie talks about her experiences conducting research around the world, how she develops solutions to wildlife crime, and the benefits of taking on new opportunities that interest y...

Juliette Gorson earned her PhD from the biology program at the Graduate Center in 2018. On the day of the interview, Juliette had just finished her last day as an account executive at Russo Partners, a science communications firm. She then started her position as a visiting assistant professor at Hofstra University in the fall of 2019. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Juliette tells us about worki...

Kishore Gangangari earned his PhD in chemistry from the Graduate Center. He is a life science consultant at Charles Rivers Associates, a global consulting firm that provides expertise on litigation, business strategy, and government policies. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Kishore describes the skills needed to become a science consultant, his application and interview experiences, and his exper...

Kurt Reynertson is a graduate of the Biology PhD Program at the Graduate Center. He is now Manager of Regulatory & Stewardship Policy at Johnson & Johnson. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Kurt tells us about his transition from the plant sciences program to product research. He explains how industry jobs, especially those in a large company, can complement multidisciplinary skillsets and offer a...

Marian Díaz-Wionczek earned her PhD from the psychology program at the Graduate Center. She is Principal at MDW Consulting & Research, a consulting firm for children's educational media and technology. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Mariana tells us about her entrance into the field of children’s “edutainment.” She talks to us about her career path, being open to unexpected opportunities, her fe...

Delia Mellis is the Director of Program and Faculty Development for the Bard Prison Initiative and an alum of the Graduate Center's PhD Program in History. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Delia discusses her passion for teaching and learning. She speaks at length about the Bard Prison Initiative, a program that extends teaching into six correctional facilities in New York State. She also talks ab...

Ma Sha is head of the bioprocess application labs at Eppendorf, a biotech company that develops products for laboratories around the world. He earned his PhD from the biochemistry program at the Graduate Center. In this episode of Alumni Aloud, Ma describes his current role in the company and how his role has changed over time. He discusses the hiring process, contrasts academic and industrial lab...