This week, we will be joined by Nick Edwards (@Nick__Edwards) (he/him).  

Nick did a PhD and postdoc in Neuroscience. As an undergrad, Nick decided to become a neuroscientist to contribute to the understanding and treatment of mental health. His interest in mental health largely stems from watching his mom struggle from severe bipolar disorder, and his own experience with ADHD.   During his postdoc, Nick helped a friend start a company and volunteered to evaluate startups for an angel investing group (mostly at night after lab). These experiences convinced Nick that he could potentially make a real-world impact on important issues through business. Since that time, Nick has pursued a career in consulting at BCG, and commercial strategy at Illumina.  Nick runs a podcast, called Once a Scientist, which shares the stories of people who have made the transition into various industries, and other important topics (on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, etc).  Check them out on Twitter and Instagram @_OnceaScientist  

Check out Fay and Nick's episode of Once a Scientist here!

A full-text transcript of this episode is available via google doc.

Join us each Saturday at 3 pm EDT/12 pm PDT for the Youtube live stream! The podcast will be posted each Tuesday! Grad Chat focuses on maintaining mental health and balance in grad school. Want to be a guest or know somebody we should be talking to? Fill out our google form!

Follow our host on Twitter: Fay Lin (@xiaofei_lin)  

Check out the PhD Balance website for more info on Grad Chat!

This week, we will be joined by Krystal Vasquez (@CaffeinatedKrys) (she/her).   Krystal is a PhD candidate in Atmospheric Chemistry at Caltech. Due to a genetic condition, Krystal's health took a turn for the worst during her 3rd year of grad school. The stark difference between her experiences before and after identifying as disabled led Krystal to advocate for increased accessibility in academia (especially within the STEM disciplines) and the inclusion of disabled voices in diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. 

As a part of these efforts, Krystal runs the blog "Chronically Invisible" which works to highlight all the disabled scientists you never learned about in your textbooks. She also co-founded the Caltech Disability Coalition, which is the university’s first disability-related organization.

A full-text transcript of this episode is available via google doc.

Join us each Saturday at 3 pm EDT/12 pm PDT for the Youtube live stream!  The podcast will be posted each Tuesday! Grad Chat focuses on maintaining mental health and balance in grad school. Want to be a guest or know somebody we should be talking to? Fill out our google form!

A casual discussion between a current and a recent graduate student about all things mental and personal health. Not medical or professional advice.

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Fay Lin (@xiaofei_lin)  & Susanna Harris (@SusannaLHarris)

Check out the PhD Balance website for more info on Grad Chat!

This week, we will be joined by Abe Asfaw (@abe_asfaw) (he/him).  Abe is completing his PhD at Princeton University focusing on experimental quantum computation. His research has three focus areas: stabilizing magnetic fields for quantum computers based on electron spins, pulsed electron spin resonance experiments using superconducting resonators fabricated from materials with high kinetic inductance, and transport measurements of electrons floating on shallow superfluid helium. He also serves on the board of the Ethiopian Physics Society in North America, with the goal of promoting physics education and research among Ethiopians in Ethiopia and North America.  

Here is a link to the demo. Abe got the results back from the quantum computer, so you can see how the quantum computer gave us back results. 

A full-text transcript of this episode is available via google doc. 

Join us each Saturday at 3 pm EDT/12 pm PDT for the Youtube live stream!  The podcast will be posted each Tuesday! Grad Chat focuses on maintaining mental health and balance in grad school. Want to be a guest or know somebody we should be talking to? Fill out our google form!

A casual discussion between a current and a recent graduate student about all things mental and personal health. Not medical or professional advice.

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Fay Lin (@xiaofei_lin)  & Susanna Harris (@SusannaLHarris)

Check out the PhD Balance website for more info on Grad Chat!

How can we navigate the job market right after graduation? Is it important to practice self-care when searching for a job? What is the interview process like?  

This week, we will be joined by Dr Matthew Facciani (@MatthewFacciani) (he/him). Matthew is a postdoc researcher at Vanderbilt University who just graduated with a PhD in sociology from the University of South Carolina this summer. Before that, he was in a different PhD program studying cognitive neuroscience before changing fields. He is studying how different social factors impact the health of LGBTQ individuals, while his dissertation was on political polarization and misinformation. Matthew's goal is to become a professor someday, even though that is such a challenge with the current job market. Outside of academia, he is passionate about science communication and social justice activism.

A full-text transcript of this episode is available via google doc!

Join us each Saturday at 3 pm EDT/12 pm PDT for the Youtube live stream!  The podcast will be posted each Tuesday! Grad Chat focuses on maintaining mental health and balance in grad school. Want to be a guest or know somebody we should be talking to? Fill out our google form!

A casual discussion between a current and a recent graduate student about all things mental and personal health. Not medical or professional advice.

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Fay Lin (@xiaofei_lin) & Susanna Harris (@SusannaLHarris)

Check out the PhD Balance website for more info on Grad Chat!

What are the incentive structures of graduate education and academia? Can these incentive structures improve to better support the career goals, personal/intellectual development, and wellness of graduate students? 

This week, we will be joined by Dr Rob Brown (@RobertPaulBrown) (he/him). Rob is a postdoctoral researcher at UCLA working on computational genetics and medicine. Rob is the co-founder of Big Bio (@bigbiotweets), an organization that provides training to a wider range of student researchers via online tutorials on various biological concepts. Over his last 9 years of grad school and postdoc research, Rob has been involved in many non-research initiatives supporting mentorship and wellness in graduate education. 

To find out more about Big Bio, visit their webpage.

A full-text transcript of this episode is available via google doc!

Join us each Saturday at 3 pm EDT/12 pm PDT for the Youtube live stream!  The podcast will be posted each Tuesday! Grad Chat focuses on maintaining mental health and balance in grad school. Want to be a guest or know somebody we should be talking to? Fill out our google form!

A casual discussion between a current and a recent graduate student about all things mental and personal health. Not medical or professional advice.

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Fay Lin (@xiaofei_lin)  & Susanna Harris (@SusannaLHarris)

Check out the PhD Balance website for more info on Grad Chat!

This week, we will be joined by Anwesha Dasgupta (@AnweshaDG) (she/her). Anwesha is a PhD candidate at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville in the Department of Biochemistry. Anwesha lived in southern and western parts of India before moving to Knoxville for her PhD. During this chat, Anwesha will share her experiences as an international student while navigating significant personal loss and mental health struggle.

A full-text transcript of this episode is available via google doc!

Join us each Saturday at 3 pm EDT/12 pm PDT for the Youtube live stream!  The podcast will be posted each Tuesday! Grad Chat focuses on maintaining mental health and balance in grad school. Want to be a guest or know somebody we should be talking to? Fill out our google form!

A casual discussion between a current and a recent graduate student about all things mental and personal health. Not medical or professional advice.

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Fay Lin (@xiaofei_lin)  & Susanna Harris (@SusannaLHarris)

Check out the PhD Balance website for more info on Grad Chat!

CW: Mentions of Eating Disorders/Anorexia

Seeking professional help is an extremely valuable way to address mental health struggle. What does the process of seeking professional help look like? What are the challenges? How do we seek professional help amidst rampant mental health stigma?  

This week, we will be joined by Dr Brittany Uhlorn (@BrittanyUhlorn) (she/her). Brittany recently finished her PhD in Cancer Biology at the University of Arizona. She is currently pursuing a career as a science writer. After developing an eating disorder in grad school, Brittany is here to share her journey navigating recovery among mental health stigma, and how professional help was the right fit for her lifelong wellbeing.

A full-text transcript of this episode is available via google doc!

Join us each Saturday at 3 pm EDT/12 pm PDT for the Youtube live stream!  The podcast will be posted each Tuesday! Grad Chat focuses on maintaining mental health and balance in grad school. Want to be a guest or know somebody we should be talking to? Fill out our google form!

A casual discussion between a current and a recent graduate student about all things mental and personal health. Not medical or professional advice.

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Fay Lin (@xiaofei_lin)  & Susanna Harris (@SusannaLHarris)

Check out the PhD Balance website for more info on Grad Chat!

Ableism is present in academia. How can research students access support and tackle internalized ableism and perfectionism? How can we be an advocate for all disabled people?  

This week, we will be joined by Linda Corcoran (@LindaCCor) (she/they) who is a Teagasc Walsh Scholar/MSc Research Student studying food science in Dublin, Ireland.

A full-text transcript of this episode is available via google doc!

Join us each Saturday at 3 pm EDT/12 pm PDT for the Youtube live stream!  The podcast will be posted each Tuesday! Grad Chat focuses on maintaining mental health and balance in grad school. Want to be a guest or know somebody we should be talking to? Fill out our google form!

A casual discussion between a current and a recent graduate student about all things mental and personal health. Not medical or professional advice.

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Fay Lin (@xiaofei_lin)  & Susanna Harris (@SusannaLHarris)

Check out the PhD Balance website for more info on Grad Chat!

This week, we will be joined by Gülsün Demirezen (she/her). Gülsün was born and raised in Turkey. She is currently a Mechanical Engineering PhD candidate at the Centre for Sustainable Energy Systems at Ryerson University in Toronto, Canada. Gülsün will soon be completing four years as an international student in Canada. We'll be chatting about the challenges and joys of living in another country as a student, as well as Gülsün's experiences as a woman from a developing country, and a woman in STEM.

A full-text transcript of this episode is available via google doc!

Join us each Saturday at 3 pm EDT/12 pm PDT for the Youtube live stream!  The podcast will be posted each Tuesday! Grad Chat focuses on maintaining mental health and balance in grad school. Want to be a guest or know somebody we should be talking to? Fill out our google form!

A casual discussion between a current and a recent graduate student about all things mental and personal health. Not medical or professional advice.

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Fay Lin (@xiaofei_lin)  & Susanna Harris (@SusannaLHarris)

Check out the PhD Balance website for more info on Grad Chat!

Processing grief is a challenge by itself. How can we navigate processing grief in grad school?  

This week, we will be joined by Janay Franklin (she/her), who is currently pursuing her PhD in Neuroscience at UNC-Chapel Hill. After losing two loved ones during grad school, Janay is here to chat about her experiences processing grief during a PhD. You can follow Janay on Twitter at @justbe_frank

A full-text transcript of this episode is available via google doc!

Join us each Saturday at 3 pm EDT/12 pm PDT for the Youtube live stream!  The podcast will be posted each Tuesday! Grad Chat focuses on maintaining mental health and balance in grad school. Want to be a guest or know somebody we should be talking to? Fill out our google form!

A casual discussion between a current and a recent graduate student about all things mental and personal health. Not medical or professional advice.

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Fay Lin (@xiaofei_lin)  & Susanna Harris (@SusannaLHarris)

Check out the PhD Balance website for more info on Grad Chat!