Reflections and AdviceBy Nicole Pouliot '96 May 25, 1996 As an outgoing senior who has been involved with WISP every term since her freshman winter, Nicole Pouliot was asked to write some thoughts concerning her four years here. A brilliant exposition of her experience follows. Sometimes when I sit down at a computer like this to write, I feel as if my mind is as blank as the screen I see before me. But that isn't the case now. Rather I sit here and a million thoughts swim through my mind. What am I doing after June 9th? What does a Dartmouth degree mean? Should I have done things differently over the last four years? How will I keep in touch with my friends? The truth is that these questions have no easy answers, and that scares me out of my mind. But then again, I look at some of the stuff I have tackled while here at Dartmouth and I think, "At the time, there didn't seem to be any easy answer to those tasks, but I got through them." So I guess I'll get through this too. And that's what it has become to me . . . finding the best way to get through things for myself so that I am proud of who I am and what I have become. Truth is that I could have had a job by now. I've had some offers, but they just didn't seem right for me for one reason or another. I say that rather casually now, but I assure you that turning them down has been one of the hardest things I have had to do. I can certainly tell you that it took all of my strength to not give in and take that first offer
Truth is I probably also could have done some things differently while I was here. Sometimes I think to myself, what was I doing taking that government class? I wish I had gotten a chance to work in another lab on campus! Why didn't I ever apply to go to France? These are all thoughts that have run through my head at one point or another, but each of the choices I have made and experiences I have had has helped me to become the person I am today. Besides that, I've decided it doesn't really matter exactly what classes you take. It doesn't even really matter what facts you remember and which you forget. What matters instead is that Dartmouth has given me a solid education that allows me to ask questions and know how to go about looking for some answers. So as I depart, I would like to leave you with two thoughts that I have adopted during my time here:
May sound cliche, but it's true. People and experiences come and go, but you always have to live with yourself, which is much easier to do when you're happy with who you are. For a long time, I had been trying to fit myself into a mold that others had made for me, and it's only recently that I have begun to break that mold and to pour my own. Last week, I read a line in Daniel Quinn's Ishmael that made this all the more clear to me: "It isn't the tale you tell that counts, it's the way you actually live it." So my walk here is practically done . . . except for that one up to the commencement platform to receive my degree. And on June 10th I'll continue my walk down the path that I make. Maybe someday our paths will cross . . . whether they do or not, I wish you all the best of luck. In parting, my last words are to Mary Pavone - thank you for giving me the courage to take my own path. By Liz Maier '97 May 17, 1997 Below is a lengthy compilation of advice from Kaitlin Duck Sherwood about being a woman in the engineering industry, as well as several reactions to these thoughts from the women who have experienced what Sherwood describes. The February Women's Issue of Graduating Engineer features an article by one of the
In the article, which is aimed at women entering the engineering work force, Sherwood makes observations about what to expect and gives advice on how best to handle situations women in industry will likely encounter. "I'm going to talk about the things that are going to annoy you and help you when you get out to The Real World," she writes. Sherwood majored in metallurgical engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where she returned ten years later for her graduate degree, and she currently does web-site consulting and is employed by a software research laboratory in the San Francisco area. She breaks her advice down into eleven categories. "Women, prepare now for being cold at work for the rest of your life. Those of you who have taken thermodynamics know that heat production is a function of volume (radius cubed), while heat dissipation is a function of surface area (radius squared). So the generation to dissipation ratio goes as the radius, and so the smaller you are, the colder you will be." "In addition to being colder, women in my experience seem to be more prone to carpal tunnel syndrome. I have a friend whose theory is that because men's shoulders are wider and their hand span greater, they don't have such a big excursion when hopping from the keyboard to mouse or reach for funky keys. It may also be that tables and chairs are the wrong size for people who are substantially bigger or smaller than the average." If you are uncomfortable, ask for a different desk or chair, she advises. "And don't feel bad about asking for this: a new desk and chair is cheaper for the company than two years of physical therapy." "Whenever possible, explain your ideas in terms of how they would benefit the other person, not how they would benefit you. Women tend to be more sympathetic, so they tend to expect sympathy more readily. Forget it. You have to make them understand why they want to do what you want them to do." "If the boss says, 'We'd like you to write a statistical process control package for our line in one month,' the appropriate response is not 'you're out of your mind,' nor is it 'that can't be done.' The appropriate response is, 'Well, we could do that, but only if we hire about five contractors and rent six computers for development.' It may be that the project is important enough that they are willing to do just that." "In general, you should not wait for people to poll you for your opinion, for your status, for your needs and desires. You have to speak up and tell them yourself." "I have a friend who observes that if a man thinks the answer is three, he'll say 'The answer is three.' If a woman knows the answer is three, she will say, 'I think the answer is three.' Women tend to be more tentative. This is not necessarily bad‹you may end up with higher credibility than the man who keeps insisting that the answer is three when it really is seventeen...but you might look wishy-washy." "The fact that someone doesn't like a particular idea of yours does not necessarily mean that they don't like or respect you. They just may lack diplomacy." If someone at work attacks you, Sherwood says, "assume he had a fight with his wife, got into a fender-bender, has to come up with $3000 to fix his roof, and left his wallet at home. Then feel sorry for him and see if you can make his day better." "If you say, 'Yeah, I screwed up' when you do screw up, then when you say, 'No, that was not my fault,' people will believe you. Now, when you do accept blame, DO NOT GROVEL. DO NOT MAKE EXCUSES." "I'd advise as a minimum generating weekly status reports (regardless of whether your boss asks for them or not). Mention what you are working on, why it has taken you longer than you thought (because it always does), what would help you in terms of equipment, cooperation from other departments, etc." "Most men like women. It's a strong evolutionarially favorable trait. So all other things being equal, you may well get more cooperation from men than they would give to other men." "Because there are relatively few women around, if you are the only woman in a meeting of 30, guess who the Vice President is going to remember? Yes, you will be more exposed. Yes, your screw-ups will be more visible...but your successes will also be more visible." After reading Sherwood's article, other mentors in WISP's e-mentoring program were asked to comment on her advice. Did they run into the same issues in the work place as Sherwood? How did they handle these situations? The women who responded work for companies like IBM, Oracle, Superconducting Core Technologies (SCT) and the Environmental Systems Research Institute. Here is what they had to say:
"This is a job interview story, but it set the tone for my whole career at the company. I was interviewing with the VP of Marketing (yes, science people do end up in marketing sometimes!), a strong-willed and very persuasive gentleman. He asked about one of his competitors: 'Should we be worried about them?' I knew he was concerned about that particular company, and he probably should have been, but I took the other side. 'No, I don't think so...' I replied, and I went on to list my reasons. He was jazzed; we were actually arguing over this! I took the job. I had the reputation from the start of being a straight-shooter who'd say what I thought." "I was impressed with the fact that "Duck" emphasized ADVANTAGES and FACTS of being a woman in a male-dominated field instead of the usual negatives. My husband and I are both engineers at IBM doing similar work in a similar environment. Through him I have learned that I am treated differently:
My husband and I are very similar in temperament, so I believe strongly that these facts are the result of our sexes. I think that the 'pearls' reflected the fact that 'different' is not always a disadvantage." "I had to chuckle at some of the things [Sherwood] wrote, because they are so true. Sometimes you don't take the time to reflect on the situation and things just happen. By reading the article, it gave me a better perspective on the male-dominated office environment I currently work in. Also, it gave me some helpful tips on certain traps I need to be aware of and do not want to fall into. One thing in particular, she writes about women being more tentative. That is definitely a point which I would like to improve on. I tend to say, 'I think it is...' instead of 'It is.' Being more affirmative is especially important for women. In my experience women have to work harder to prove their abilities and earn credibility. Plus the fact that we tend to be more aware of ourselves, more self-conscious perhaps, it makes it all the more challenging. My favorite advice is: don't take it personally. This is something that has taken me years to develop (and it's an on-going process). I have been working with the same male engineer for five years now. He was originally my mentor, but now he is my colleague. He
"My reaction relates to a couple of the pearls, 'accept blame properly' and 'being remembered'. I recently switched jobs, which has given me a chance to start fresh with people who don't know much about me. This has given me the chance to apply something that I learned at my last job. I am one of the only two women engineers at my company, and leading a highly visible project, so I relate very well to the comments about being remembered. My team's successes and screw-ups *are* highly visible, since everyone in the company is watching my project. So, yes, when the schedule slips, or a part doesn't work as anticipated, I have to own up to it. What I have learned is that other engineers don't necessarily think I'm a bad engineer because we made a mistake‹it's not personal.
To those senior women engineers and scientists who are about to join the work force, move on to graduate school, medical school, or any number of options, I would like to
By Liz Maier '97 July 27, 1997 No one knows more about applying to graduate schools than those students who have experienced the process for themselves. Below, Liz Maier describes her experience as a grad school applicant, offering perspectives and advice on everything from how to get in to what to do once you're accepted. Last week I stopped in on a Career Services panel discussion about graduate, medical, law, and business schools and thought to myself that this was what I should have been doing during my sophomore summer, when my head was who knows where (probably on the soccer field). After hearing a brief overview of the application process, students and panel members split up into groups representing each type of school to facilitate the question and answer process. While I am pretty clueless about medical and law school, I have been through the grad school application ordeal, and perhaps reading about my experience could answer a few questions for a few people, especially those who missed the panel discussion. So I thought I would use some space here to describe what the process was like for me, and especially what I now wish I had done differently. "Differently" generally translates into "sooner" in this case. Because I made the decision to go to graduate school the summer before my senior year, I did not take many steps
This was the hardest step in the whole process for me to take. Some people love one subject more than anything, and so to continue to study it in graduate school (and then maybe to profess it one day) is a natural progression. I did not fall in love with one field at Dartmouth; I got interested in a lot of them. I spent a lot of time feeling confused. I enjoyed my major, environmental biology, but I also liked the applied nature of the engineering classes I took, and I wanted to combine them: to learn how to apply the biology that I was studying. I began to think about environmental engineering, especially bioremediation, or the use of organisms like bacteria and plants in environmental clean-up, as a way to combine my interests. What really helped make up my mind about graduate school was how I spent my off-terms the spring of my junior year and the following summer. I used this time to explore writing and teaching interests in the evening while working at an arboretum during the day. The arboretum job showed me the kind of work I could be doing with a BA in biology, since most of the staff had similar degrees, and while it was fun outdoor work, I was not mentally challenged enough to feel satisfied. The research staff upstairs were working on some fascinating projects in plant genetics, but they all had higher degrees. I got the feeling that in order to do real research, I was going to need at least a Masters degree. Plus I was itching to carry out a research project from start to finish, since I had enjoyed my research experiences at Dartmouth, so writing a Masters thesis was appealing.
Talking to career counselors at Career Services, something I am ashamed to say that I did not do, can help you through this step. If there is anything to take home from this Editor's Message, it is to take advantage of the resources at Career Services. Don't do what I did and pretend like those white paper fliers in your Hinman Box aren't really addressed to you. I remember that many students at the panel discussion had questions about the application process--how to decide which and how many schools to apply to, when to apply, and what the application is like. I can only speak for how I went about applying to environmental engineering programs, where most academic bioremediation research occurs. In the beginning, I knew very little about environmental engineering programs, so I checked Peterson's Annual Guide to Graduate Study out of my public library. The guide has several volumes, so I checked out the ones for engineering and biological sciences. The guide can tell you which schools have the department you are interested in, what degrees they offer, the requirements for admission, and the research interests of the faculty. You can find this guide at Career Services. I ended up sending away for information and an application from every school with an environmental engineering program that had faculty doing research in bioremediation or wetlands, and also some programs in environmental science, natural resources, and biological engineering. I did this during the summer before my senior year, and I did it with form letters through the mail. I could also have requested by phone or e-mail that information be sent to me. By the end of August, I had a library of applications, piles that dominated the topography of my narrow dorm room all through senior year. Common sense could have told me that the South Dakota School of Mines wasn't the best match for me, and sure enough, I laid that application packet to rest in a River Cluster recycle bin, but the thing about grad school is that some lesser-known universities house some fabulous departments. For
Obviously my equal-opportunity approach to grad school applications was inefficient and profligate. I could have eliminated many universities by talking to professors in the field, to find out which programs are strong -- which ones have a good reputation among engineers, and which ones Dartmouth students have had success in. I strongly recommend asking advice from Dartmouth professors in your field of interest. They all know professors at other universities, and they know who is good. For me, since I had specific research interests, my search for the right graduate program was as much a search for the right research project with the right thesis advisor (the person who sits on your graduate committee and directs your research, whose grant money probably pays your stipend, who is your boss and mentor, and the single most influential person in your graduate life). Dartmouth faculty can turn you on to potential advisors. Also, the Internet is your good friend here. If you are wondering if the University of Wisconsin has any entomologists on its faculty, and what research projects they are working on, use a Search Engine to "find" the University of Wisconsin, or use the Web address given in Peterson's Guide. Like Dartmouth, other universities have home pages with links to specific departments, faculty in those departments, admissions, and other information. You can contact professors or grad school admissions over e-mail right from these sites. If after scrutinizing the biology department at Wisconsin you think there's a chance you might apply there, order the application. That way you'll have it if and when you need it. As far as how many schools to apply to, it varies. Because I was not sure how an application from a biologist would be received by engineering schools, I applied to eight programs to cover my bases. I had friends who applied to five and two schools each. When picking schools, keep in mind whether a school has faculty doing research you are interested in (for each school, I tried to name the professor I would want for an advisor and then the professor I would want second, etc.), the school's reputation, what
The applications I filled out were all quite similar. They asked for background information, work experience, awards. They required two, three, or four letters of recommendation, two copies of my transcript (one for the department and one for the admissions office), and my GRE score report. They also asked for a personal statement -- an essay describing my background, research interests, and career goals, and explaining why I wanted to attend that particular graduate program. I used the personal statement to promote myself as a biologist who, with my knowledge and skills, and also my preparation in math and engineering, could fill a unique niche in an environmental engineering department. That strategy seemed to work, thankfully! Most application deadlines run from mid December until mid February. Schools usually respond with offers of admission and financial offers in April. I advise that you finish your applications far in advance of the deadline, which means try to fill some out the summer before senior year; most schools make the new application available in July or August. This will alleviate the work load of senior year I mentioned before. I, of course, spent my senior fall and winter writing personal statements and filling in little ovals, shooting for deadlines instead of ahead of them, and I wished I'd had the discipline to get that part over with in September before school started.
Some schools -- and I imagine that this will become more and more common -- now have electronic applications. Georgia Tech encouraged this option by reducing its application fee for computer applicants. Since I already had Georgia Tech's paper application, along with applications to every other school on God's earth, I applied through the mail, so I can't give an opinion about the computer application. There is a Graduate Record Examination, or GRE, general test and GRE subject tests, which are like achievement tests in high school. Most grad programs require the general test, and many also require the subject test in your field. There are both computer-based and paper-based general tests. Career Services has GRE booklets with information, sample questions, and a registration bulletin that give details about the tests. I took the paper-based general test twice during my senior year, in October and December. The test had seven 30-minute sections: two quantitative, two verbal, and two analytical, plus an experimental section that didn't count. The math and verbal questions are similar to those on the SAT but a bit more difficult, and the analytical sections test your logic with questions in the vein of, "If Ann sits next to Sue, Doug always sits between two girls, etc., etc...where did Alex sit?" Each of the three categories is scored out of 800 points. My scores were similar to my SAT results. Because application deadlines are often January 10 or 15, only the fall test score report would reach most schools in time. The paper-based general test is next offered on November 1 and April 4, and it costs $96. Rising juniors might think about registering for the spring date. I entered the October test feeling pressure to do well, since I had no other shot at it for many schools I applied to. Taking the test junior spring is good practice regardless, and if you do well, you won't have to worry about the GRE senior year!
Graduate schools all require these, and you probably don't want to be chasing them down in December, like I was. Junior year is definitely not too soon to be asking your professors to write recommendations, or at least to start getting to know your professors if you haven't already. If you open a file with Graduate Advising, you can have professors and employers send their letters to the file (there is a common form to give to your references), so that when it comes time to apply to grad school, you can write a request to have a set of recommendations sent to each school. There is a fee to set up the file, and a fee for each school you send letters to, but the system is convenient, and most schools understand if you don't use the recommendation forms that come with the application. Plus, if you choose to take a year off before
My impression is that most good students in science and engineering should not expect to fund their graduate education alone. Universities offer need-based financial assistance, but also fellowships and research and teaching assistantships based on merit. Often, students who are not on fellowships, which are very competitive, are earning their stipends by working on their advisor's research or by being TA's. Departments put
When I embarked on this whole graduate school quest, I decided that I was going to have to sell myself, but at the same time didn't want to sell myself short, and I decided that the best way for potential thesis advisors to get to know me and for me to get to know them and their programs was to visit schools. Graduate schools will fly in prospective students, meaning students who have been accepted but who haven't committed yet, and will show them around the facilities, introduce them to faculty, take them out to dinner -- basically recruit them. By this time, the visiting student has no opportunity to influence the admissions decision; she's already in. Interviews aren't normally required for grad school admission. However, I did my best to contact and set up interviews with faculty at the schools that I was interested in and that were within driving distance of home, and then I did a three-school sweep over Winter Break, before admissions and financial aid decisions were made. I talked to professors who shared my research interests, took tours of labs, and met graduate students (the best way to find out the true colors of a professor is to talk to his students). This way I was given a chance to impress people in person, if only to show how serious I was by how far I drove! And I got a feeling for where I would fit in the department -- who was doing research I was interested in, who needed graduate students, and who actually had the money to take students.
Let me finish by saying that I am by no means the world's leading expert on graduate school (I have yet to attend) or the graduate school application and admission process. I've only been through that once, but once was enough to figure out what I wish I'd done differently and what I'd be sure to do again. If anyone has any questions for me about my experience, feel free to blitz me (Liz Maier). If you have questions about graduate school in general, how it works and how to apply, talk to the folks at Graduate Advising, and talk to your professors. It's amazing the resources I didn't use but that I hope you will. By Nicole Pouliot Clegg '96 April 5, 1998 Dartmouth grad Nicole Pouliot Clegg '96 describes her unusual road to success and happiness after graduation, stressing the importance of perseverance and seizing every opportunity that becomes available to you. Many of you may remember me as a former WISP intern in charge of the peer mentoring program and the WISP study room and even the newsletter for a term or two. I recently contacted Mary Pavone to try out my new e-mail account and to see how WISP was fairing these days and, wouldn't you know it, one of the first things she *blitzed* back was a request for me to update you all on what I've been up to since graduation. I was one of many '96s who had no idea what they were going to do after graduation. I had a new diploma in hand and felt I had just accomplished the biggest feat in the world, and yet I was clueless (like a 'shmen again?). I majored in Environmental and Evolutionary
Just three weeks after graduation, I was heading off to my first job...working for an environmental publishing company in Massachusetts called The Green Book. Although Career Services had warned us that few people found jobs through the help wanted ads, I had found this job in the Boston Globe. In retrospect, I realize now that because I was so excited about just being employed, I let myself overlook the fact that my job was really nothing more than glorified data entry. However, my happiness ended much too soon when The Green Book went out of business only three weeks after I began! Talk about your short-lived career.
More importantly, I think I just wasn't suited to consulting. You see, I was a person who appreciated the environment, had studied its degradation, and wanted to protect it from any further abuse. Yet most of the clients that we were dealing with could've cared less about environmental protection. They simply wanted to know the least amount of effort
I applied for and received an internship in the Public Information and Permitting Office where I worked on several projects concerning the department's outreach efforts. I learned a lot about the department and was able to see and apply for their in-house job postings (most state agencies post jobs in-house before going public). My co-workers were eager to help me find a full-time position because they saw the kind of work I could produce. However, most of the postings required far more experience than I had. Just as the eighth week was ending and I was beginning to think I might have made a big mistake leaving my old job, a new door opened. An intern from the Biology Bureau had just received another job and her position, working with a lake monitoring program, was available. This internship would last until Christmas. My supervisor immediately recommended me and I made the switch into the world of lake monitoring. This position allowed me to combine my lab background (working in Professor Carol Folt's lab) with my desire to help people appreciate the environment, in this case the lakes they lived near. And then, the most exciting in-house job posting appeared‹for an Aquatic Education Coordinator. What could be a better way of protecting the environment than working as
My main responsibilities in this position are to oversee the educational efforts of the Water Division such as organizing training seminars and conducting workshops for professionals, municipal officials, and youth educators, developing training materials and curricula, and serving on educational committees. I am also the state coordinator for a water education program known as Project WET (Water Education for Teachers). Through this program, I train educators in the use of a national curriculum focusing on water (its physical and chemical properties, how it connects living systems, water management, and social and cultural aspects of water). The best part of my job is that, rather than being a regulator who tells people what they can't do to the environment, I have the responsibility of empowering people with knowledge so they won't want to degrade the Earth in the first place. If someone had told me a year and a half ago that I would be in this position today, I probably wouldn't have believed them. I knew back then I had a desire to share my
By Michelle Nichols '98 May 30, 1998 Michelle Nichols looks back on her four years at Dartmouth and in so doing, finds the true meaning behind her success. I knew since a sophomore, when I took on the editor position for WISP, that it would be asked of me three years later to write a parting essay for the newsletter‹a reflection on my time at Dartmouth. To some degree, I have been thinking on this for three years, but
At the end of freshman year, my research advisor gave me a small framed piece of pencil art - a pastoral setting of trees and rolling hills whose focal point was a pebble road that wound its way into the background of an approaching sunset. Around the picture was the inscription, "On the road to success, make sure to enjoy the ride." I don't think I fully
I have several friends in the '00 and '01 classes who, missing out on my sophomore year mid-college crisis, I think, have a kind of surreal view of my Dartmouth career -
By Catherine Eaton-Smith '99 August 3, 1998 Catherine Eaton-Smith '99 talks with four women at Dartmouth actively pursuing careers in research. She shares with you the salient points from her interviews, including advice for women in science aspiring to do research. The possibilities seem endless! There are millions of jobs out there! Where do I want to go? Further study? Teaching? Industry? Private business? Research? There are so many options! Daily we interact with people who have chosen to be professors, they share their knowledge while doing research of their own. But, what if one wants to focus on research? On campus presently there are a number of women who have developed their careers by focusing upon research. Learning about this option opened a whole other area of possible careers I had not considered. I could not help but wonder what these women are researching presently, how they went about setting up their present job path, and what bits of wisdom they would like to impart to women studying the sciences. The four women I will mention are all on campus this summer, working away. Some of you may know them already, as all four interact with students, whether as a lab instructor, a guest lecturer, or even by teaching classes of their own. They graciously agreed to share about their lives and it is now my honor to introduce you to each of them. From the Research Computing Group of Academic Computing here at Dartmouth, Susan A. Schwarz uses her B.A. and M.S. in mathematics in her work on UNIX computers application development. While researching, she provides support for math and graphics packages, and helps others who are developing their own applications. Schwarz also works with faculty, staff, and students through teaching mini-courses and assisting with both curricular and research computing. With a B.S.M.E. (Bach. Sci. Mechanical Engineering) from Western New England College and a M.S. degree from Thayer (with a concentration in biomaterials), Lauren S. Bargmann is part of a group working on reverse engineering of knee and hip prostheses that have been removed from patients because of failure. Bargmann's present research is "looking at a new form of polyethylene to see if it has the potential to improve wear and damage resistance for these implants while they are in vivo." She also works with students in labs and other capacities, does administrative work with grants, and coordinates an annual large-scale educational conference for orthopedic surgeons. In the area of Biomedical Engineering and as a colleague of Lauren Bargmann, Barbara H. Currier has uniquely structured her career. She explains that she and her husband, John Currier, "have been job sharing for over eight years -- over four years at Thayer School." Although their paid job is investigating the polyethylene that is used as the bearing surfaces in the artificial joints, they both split a second, equally important job of raising their two children. Occasionally, Currier also enters the classrooms of Biomedical/Biomaterial Engineering courses to give guest lectures. Currier's engineering studies began at Rice University where she received her B.S. and Master's degree of Chemical Engineering. Judith M. Prewitt is best described by her statement that there is "no boundary to my curiosity." Currently Prewitt is analyzing natural language verses artificial language. (The language we use has nuances and imperfections that an artificial language can't account for.) Through language, she is exploring the need for effective ways of dealing with and accessing the mass amounts of information that are available. She also investigates to understand how language is connected to understanding the mind and thought. We, as students, will receive the benefits of this research as she has designed a class crossing multiple subject areas by the name of Language Engines (Cognitive Science 81 or Engines 9). The whole time she has been at Dartmouth she has been teaching individualized courses, but there is so much interest in the subject that she put together the class Language Engines. Of her many contributions, the most well known is the "Prewitt Edge Finder", the most optimal of all edge finders, still receiving distinctions today after its patent in 1961. These four women come from diverse backgrounds. Bargmann states directly "I basically ran into this position rather than actively seeking it," as four years ago she was a grad student under John Collier, for whom she is currently working. Schwarz worked as a software engineer at Creare, Inc., a R&D engineering firm in Hanover, for eleven years
Currier sums up the advice of the four by saying "Working as a Research Engineer, especially on projects that are of benefit to real patients, is very rewarding." Their thoughts are compiled below.
By Kathryn Greer '00 October 18, 1999 Katie Greer compiles some thoughts from undergraduates about the dos and don'ts of academic life at Dartmouth and some advice on how to succeed. Ah, the feeling of fall term at Dartmouth. The beautiful turning of the leaves, the chill in the air, the hours in the library...what, you ask? Hours in the library? No one really studies at Dartmouth...do they? Though it is often hard to believe, due to the number of people out on the green during these last days of sun, they do. For first year students who are adjusting to this new academic setting (and for the sophomores, juniors and seniors seeking hints for improvement in their current study habits), here is a column of advice from upperclassmen on how to succeed in classes in Dartmouth and further collegiate endeavors. The first major decision to make is what classes to take. Senior Amy Tindell recommends picking classes based on the professor, "A good professor can make even the most uninteresting topic exciting." Though it is harder to find out about professors as a freshman or sophomore, try seeking out the upperclassmen on your hall to ask about classes. UGAs can be very helpful, and even if the person you ask has never taken a class in a certain department, they will often know someone else who has. A good professor can make all the difference in a tough class. Not only can the professor make a dull-sounding class exciting, but if they are approachable, you will be more likely to ask for help if you need it. No matter what the professor is like, however, do not be afraid of talking to them if you feel you are having
Before you can go in to speak with a professor, do some studying. As you most likely have realized by now, homework in college is very different from the homework you received in high school. Just because you do not have to hand it in does not mean it is not there or
The Academic Skills Center is truly a fabulous resource for students. They have a huge rack of handouts on topics from writing a research paper, to how to take good notes in
As for strict studying, Molly Cronin, '00, maintains the importance of, "distinguishing
Others find that working in a group is helpful. Junior Amanda Cook says, "study groups are helpful, but only if you've all put in a couple of hours of studying in advance." I personally find that studying in a group can help clarify questions you may have, but to really grind the information into your head, it is important to do at least some studying alone. Sometimes working on problem sets in groups can be helpful, as people approach problems from different angles. Just be sure that everyone is working together, not just two or three people working, with the rest of the group copying off of them. Amanda Keton, a '00, says that the hardest adjustment for her in changing from high school to college studying was, "to move from structured work led by someone else to work entirely motivated from you." It is difficult to tell yourself to do work, especially when you do not need to hand it in and the sun is shining for the first time in weeks. But as Carmen Flores, also a '00, says, "it [is] up to you to take full responsibility, or else suffer when you get the final grade." Even if you are not handing in the problem set or having a quiz on the reading, the professor has assigned it for a reason: to help you learn the material that will be covered on the next exam or paper.
By Kathryn Greer '00 January 10, 2000 Katie Greer discusses the trials and tribulations, as well as the success and rewards of taking on a modified major with Engineering modified with Environmental Studies major, Viki Zoltay '00. Interested in studying in depth a topic comprised of related parts of two departments? Think you could make a cohesive major from classes in multiple departments? Why not try modifying, or creating a major from two or more departments? Dartmouth students have modified majors from engineering and economics to chemistry and religion. Viktoria Zoltay (Viki), a member of the class of 2000, has combined two of her interests into one cohesive major: engineering modified with environmental science. If a student decides to major in subject A modified with subject B, A is the primary department and B is the secondary department. The student's courseload will be
Whereas many people create their own modified majors, several, like Viki's, already exist in the ORC. The engineering department alone has established modified majors with the biology, chemistry, computer science, environmental science, economics, and studio art departments. If you wish to try a modified major already created, the ORC suggests you contact a designated professor with questions and discuss the potential major with them. Viki suggests speaking with several professors in both departments about the courses you would be able to take to create a major. She also advises speaking with older students who are already in the majors, to determine how flexible the departments are with classes and to suggest possible courses of which you may not have heard.
Viki knew from high school that she wished to work with environmental engineering. She had wanted to work on cleaning up pollution (known to environmentalists as environmental remediation) and a high school teacher told her she should look for the environmental engineering department in college. One of the reasons she chose Dartmouth was so she would not have to go to an engineering school separate from a college of arts and sciences to complete her studies‹she could take all sorts of courses. The environmental engineering classes Viki takes are different from those she would take as a straight environmental science major, in that they are much more quantitative than most environmental science classes. From engineering classes, Viki learns modeling, which
In her current research, Viki is working with the earth science department to make replicas of rock fractures, study how water and contaminants flow in rock fractures, and develop a computer model. Through making models, scientists can determine how fast and in which directions different contaminants will flow (in rock fractures). These models serve as replicas for spills and contaminations in water, which can predict spreading in future spills and contamination outbreaks, so scientists can tell when contaminants will leave particular parameters and how fast they will spread within such rock fractures. Viki hopes to eventually have a career in environmental remediation and modeling transport and fate: basically, modeling pollution to find the best means to prevent spreading. Through her work at Dartmouth, she has been able to do so as an undergraduate.
By Kathryn Greer '00 January 14, 2000 Below, Katie Greer provides lots of tips for finding a summer job as well as motivation to start the search as early as possible. Although the summer seems years away, it is now the time for students to start looking for summer jobs. If you wish to work in a laboratory, whether to get experience for your career, or just to see if you like the work, there are several ways to go about getting such a job. Laura Rasmussen, a '00, knew she wanted to work in her hometown both her freshman and junior summers. Luckily for her, Laura's hometown happens to house a large research university. Laura's plan of attack for getting a job was to pass around her resume to the various departments in which she held interest. Through this simple, straightforward method, Laura was able to find herself jobs in molecular biology laboratories both summers, doing work with transcription factors. Because not everyone has a large research university in her hometown, it is also possible
Another way to learn about the opportunities out there involves speaking with professors in the type of department you wish to work in. Viki Zoltay (a '00 featured last week) found a job for her freshman summer by speaking with one of her environmental science professors in whose work with water pollution she was interested. Not only did he help her find a job that summer, but he also became her thesis advisor. Her summer job helped her to solidify her interests in water pollution.
Another way to go about finding a summer job is using the internet. I found a job this past summer at the Association for Women in Science (AWIS) through a web search. I eventually reached the AWIS web site and read about the summer internships. Though I found that job randomly by surfing the net, other resources can help make such searches much easier and considerably less time-consuming. One great source of information about many science-jobs is through a program funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) called Research Experiences for Undergraduates (the REU program). This program funds students from all over the country to work in
Among the REU's in chemistry, there were opportunities in schools across the country. One of the programs that sounded particularly interesting is in Santa Clara University. It is a ten-week program in which students can pick from various research projects, from biochemistry to physical chemistry. The program includes seminars on ethics in science each week, the chance for students to speak with university faculty, and opportunities for students to give presentations and co-write papers. The program also provides students with a $3500 stipend and free housing on campus. Students also have the opportunity to participate in extracurricular activities such as movie nights and trips to explore the San Francisco Bay area. All of the above information for this specific program was found at: http://chemo2.scu.edu/reu/reu.html. To apply for such programs, you should go on-line to the REU web page (http://www.nsf.gov/home/crssprgm/reu/reulist.htm) and then start shopping for a field that you are interested in. You can then choose by location or institution which program you would like to apply for. The Santa Clara program has an on-line application due by the 31st of January (it really is time to find that summer job!). It also requires a transcript and two letters of recommendation. It may be a bit late to apply for that particular REU, but others have later application dates. You apply to the individual REU's.
To those of you starting out in the job-search, I wish you luck in finding work for the summer. It is not as difficult as it seems, as long as you give yourself plenty of time to search. For those of you who are not searching this year, but who will be in later years, I hope you find these hints helpful in the future! Have fun finding your jobs and good luck with those looming midterms. How to Choose Your Writer and How to Ask Once You've Chosen By Kathryn Greer '00 April 3, 2000 In the following, Katie tells you everything you need to know about obtaining recommendation letters for graduate school, scholarships, jobs, etc. She walks you through the process from choosing a writer to sending a thank-you note. So you're applying to graduate school, an off-term internship, or a Foreign Study Program. You start working on the application, and then all of a sudden you realize with horror that the application requires a letter of recommendation. How does one ask for a recommendation? Blitz? In person? On one's knees? By the time a Dartmouth student reaches his or her senior year, he or she will most likely have completed at least one, if not several, applications that require a recommendation. Hopefully, this article will help you to figure out how to go about getting those recommendations. The first step requires deciding whom you wish to ask for the recommendation. An important quality in a recommendation-writer is that he or she is someone that you like;
One consideration to keep in mind is that some potential recommendation-writers, professors especially, have many requests for recommendations each year. You may not want to ask a professor who seems too "popular," or he or she might not have the time to write a very detailed or well-thought out recommendation. In addition, administrators you work with closely could paint a more personal picture of you in a recommendation, writing of your work in a non-academic setting, and also of your outside interests. Don't feel especially close to any particular professors? There are several ways to get to know them better. Firstly, go to office hours. The secret of almost any great student is
A great way to get to know a professor in a less academic setting is to make use of "Take a Professor to Lunch," which is described in the Activities for Students Blitz-Bulletin. You can take a professor to lunch at the Hanover Inn for free! By simply signing up for one of the five slots on a given day, you and your professor have a whole lunch at the Hanover Inn to get to know one another. Viktoria Zoltay, a member of the class of 2000, made use of this option in the winter, and now she and her thesis advisor hope to make it a regular event. This is a fabulous opportunity that I strongly recommend using. Now that you have picked out your professor, the time has come to ask the big question. First of all, be sure to give your recommendation-writer as much notice as possible before the recommendation is due. This is simple politeness, though it also demonstrates responsibility. Another reason to ask early is that the professor could say "no." While this may sound discouraging, it is better that you get a "no" than a poor recommendation. The recommendation-writer may feel that he or she does not have the time to write a good recommendation, or does not feel he or she knows you well enough to write the recommendation. Do not take offense at this, instead, move on and ask another person for a recommendation. It is a good idea to have a "pool" of possible recommendation-writers in case this occurs. I usually ask for recommendations via blitzmail, as it alleviates pressure on the potential
Some professors and administrators will choose to write very specific recommendations for each program, while others write general recommendations that can be used for many different types of programs. If your recommendation-writer writes you a general recommendation, you may wish to consider making a special use of a great Career Services program. If you have a professor or administrator write you a general recommendation, you can get several copies and have the recommendations saved in a file in Career Services for up to ten years. You can use the recommendations anytime in those ten years. Since you gave the recommendation-writer so much notice, you may want to send him or her a "reminder" a week before the recommendation is due. This can be done in a nice
I hope these hints are helpful to you and that you have luck in your next search for recommendations. Have a great spring and good luck with the coming term! Here's the "Skinny..." By Kathryn Greer '00 April 17, 2000 I would imagine that many of you undergraduate women in science are interested in joining the ranks of the MS and Ph.D.'s in your fields. To do so, you must, of course, go to graduate school. This week's feature article provides a bit of an introduction to the differences between undergraduate and graduate school. I spoke with graduate students in the engineering and earth science departments here at Dartmouth about their lifestyles, especially in comparison with the undergraduate lifestyle they see here. One big difference between undergraduates and graduate students is the social atmosphere. First of all, before entering grad school, you must realize that your fellow
Another big difference between undergraduate school and graduate school is that grad students tend to live significantly farther away from campus than do undergraduates.
Grad school is something of a step towards being a "grown-up." While students are still at a university, their fellow students range from single to married, 20-somethings to 40-somethings, people in all sorts of different stages in their lives. Undergraduates tend to have, at the very least, their ages in common, along with their housing styles. They are also, for the most part, in a similar stage in life, while grad students are all over the map. Another difference Kelsey noticed is a difficulty in getting to know many different people. "To always be in the same building and constantly involved with [work] in the same building...[you are] not meeting people all the time," as you do in undergraduate school, when students walk around campus and see different people every day. On a more positive note, Zhiliang mentioned that she felt that, in some ways, graduate
Graduate students are able to take up to two courses in a given term. If a student takes 2 courses, she is expected to work for 20 hours in the lab each week. If she takes one course, she will work 30 hours a week in the lab. Finally, if she chooses not to take courses, 40 hours of lab work is expected. Thus, graduate school is like a full-time job. Kelsey estimates that she spends from eight in the morning to eleven at night working in the lab and going to school. Zhiliang estimates that she spends about two hours in class in the morning, then four or five hours in the lab, and then a few hours in the library either studying for classes or reading about what to do next in her research projects. While she does have homework most of the week, she is able to relax in front of the television several days a week. Kelsey mentioned that, in graduate school, "efficiency becomes much more important...[It is] easy to get involved in little things in the department" that are not necessarily directly involved with your research. A frustrating thing about lab research is that, "however long you think a piece of research is going to take, you can bank on it taking ten times as long." As with many situations in life, you have to be prepared for a project or experiment not to work the first time, the second time, or even the twenty-second time.
A few recommendations for students: first, be absolutely sure that your topic of research is what you want to study in graduate school. Zhiliang recommended working in a lab for a few years to get a feel for your field and your particular interests within it. Next, Kelsey said, "you should not have to pay for graduate school," especially as a science graduate student. Check out all of the packages and benefits your potential schools offer. You should be able to teach or receive a stipend to pay your bills in graduate school. Both Kelsey and Zhiliang have enjoyed their experiences with graduate school, but stress the necessity of being certain that graduate school is what you truly wish to do before
By Surabhi K. Gaur '03 February 19, 2001 "That was my reply-to for a while on blitz, ten years and counting. Its roots are a little muddled." Those are Surabhi's words. Read on to discover the facts that she has unearthed about successful career women and their pursuit of personal relationships. You see, my best friend's brother just got engaged. He and his fiancee are both in their early twenties. He is a teacher, she is a nurse. Rather, let's say she had had at least
We panicked. I figured our fretting was worth investigation and I decided to take a look into trends between education and marriage. Women in science have to devote a lot of undivided time and attention to fulfilling their educational and career options--how easy is it for men to figure in? What kind of selection do we have to choose from when we finally make time? Do all the good guys end up with girls who had time to look in their early twenties? Wait, do we even need men? Isn't that the mental bumper sticker we wear: "I'm smart, I can make it on my own. You are Mr. Who?" We don't need to settle for just anyone because we've given ourselves options through our educational pursuits that have not always been readily available to women. Oh who am I kidding, book the chapel, florist, and the caterer; make sure the priest doesn't have a christening to attend; buy me a dress, feed the guests cake, fill the bags with rice and don't forget ice sculptures! Okay, so even women with ambitious career goals would like to find someone. So what exactly are women with illustrious career goals doing these days? Peter Brimelow of Forbes asserts, "College-educated women have been having fewer babies than their
So maybe you aren't impressed knowing that I just added six years to your stopwatch (note that I will refrain from using biological clock, I loathe that term). Well, I also discovered an interesting statistic in a Newsweek article on single mothers: "...the number of women going it alone jumped by 60 percent in the last decade, according to recent US Census Bureau figures...the sharpest increases are among white womenŠcollege-educated women... and professionals."3 Take note that the highest increase is among professional women, but they do not make up the largest portion in sheer numbers. So, do these independent women exemplify liberation at its finest? Well, the article mentions some of the risks associated with single parenting--not necessarily unique to women--so let's not get carried away. Nonetheless, with education comes higher paying jobs and confidence, if nothing else. Women--who have historically been the primary caretakers of children--now do not feel they need material support from men to raise children. More educated women have the money and worldly knowledge to rear their children. A single mother no longer means the exhausted diner waitress whose child is still sleeping when she leaves for work and already tuckered out by the time she gets home. Single mothers now work in big business and technology, live in houses, not apartments, drive cars, and don't take buses. These women must believe that they have financial capabilities but also smarts--street and book--to offer a child. They must believe that a missing male component would not detract from the child's quality of life; perhaps this particular truth will only be verified with time, but for now it is a belief among the growing single mothers in America. I'm not here to tell you daring women in science to forego men, husbandry and traditional families; I just want to alert you to the changing times. Our generation of women--especially those of us in demanding fields such as science--has different options
Yes, I know we're young and maybe some of us still have our Care Bear sleeping bags, and believe me the only rings I've seen lately are the ones under my eyes due to lack of sleep. However, I thought that since I was flipping out about the ten years I had left, maybe some of you would enjoy my findings. So while you're out looking for Mr. Right, I'll be consoling my best friend about the wretched bubble gum pink bridesmaid dress she has to wear. See, there are worse things than being single. 1 Brimelow, Peter. "The Educated Mom Syndrome" in Forbes, Jun 2, 1997, V. 159, p. 52.2 Brimelow, Peter. "Marriage Rings and Nose Rings" in Forbes, Feb 10, 1997, V. 159, p. 140-141. 3 "Daughters of Murphy Brown" in Newsweek, Aug 2, 1993, V. 122, p. 58-9. By Surabhi K. Gaur '03 July 9, 2001 Obtaining an undergraduate degree in science can require a truckload of blood, sweat and tears. So with the economy slowing and solid companies reporting falling profits and job cuts, will science still pay? A look at some recent statistics puts into perspective the job market for future college graduates, especially those with scientific or technical degrees. For the better part of 2001 we have been greeted with such cheerful headlines as: "Slow summer paves the way for nasty year" or "Stocks fall on warnings by key technology companies" and the classic headline of "US stocks slump, slammed by new wave of profit warnings." With the boom of the Internet, technology and Wall Street became intertwined. Technology was epitomized by General Electric and Dupont--stable companies, a safe bet because people always needed more refrigerators, air conditioners, washers and dryers. The old blue chips companies didn't soar above expectations, beat the elusive whisper number and hit new highs three times a week.
Then for whatever reason, technology lost its cool and America awoke to such headlines as I shared with you before. Our economy was hitting a recession, allegedly, it turned out that not that many people had a computer after all, and hey, what goes up must come down, right? So to all the computer scientists, all the engineers, all the chemists, was it still going to pay to go into science now that the dot coms were dot gones and tech companies became as cool as slap bracelets, crimped hair and the New Kids on the Block? To separate technology from the stock market was to take all the zing (i.e., profits) out of it, so where did it leave recent college graduates? At Dartmouth, these times of economic slowdown were met with few problems, you'll be happy to know, according to Kathryn Hutchinson, Associate Director of Career Services. She works with science majors and started the Science Job Club for Seniors. Hutchinson explains, "Career Services wants to increase students' understanding that Career Services serves students with all types of interests, not just those interested in investment banking." They recognized that science majors were equipped to work in many fields; the challenge was to expose students to the variety of opportunities that existed. The Science Job Club presented an organized method of finding and contacting the right employers. Hutchinson feels this past year was no different for Dartmouth grads as any
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