The Cellular and Molecular Biology Graduate Program hosted the university’s first annual socializing and networking event.
Sponsored by the university’s College of Arts and Sciences and the Henry C. Lee College of Criminal Justice and Forensic Sciences, this was a three hour event with the purpose to give students a chance to network with university alumni who have gone on to successful careers in the science field.
Before introducing the alumni, there were opening remarks from Dr. Ali Senejani, a professor in the Biology and Environmental Science department, as well as Dr. Eva Sapi, professor and coordinator of cellular and molecular biology. Senejani spoke about the start of the CMBI graduate program’s beginnings, saying that “we had our first set of students back in 1990, a class of four students, all being first-years.”
“I was the only instructor at this time,” said Sapi. “For most of that first semester, but I was able to successfully show that the students were developing really good skills, and it had brought in other students as well, after another two years of this program being a part-time, we gained the ability to go full-time”
“We built this program around what the pharmaceutical and biotech industries are looking for, what is most important. When you go into this program, you are preparing for both of those fields, gaining experience,” Sapi said. “A lot of our students who joined us in getting into the field go on to do things in pharmacology or go on and do work towards their PhD.”
When asked about what motivated the creation of the program, Senejani said, “Just like when Alan Turing created the computer, when you create something that only benefits you sure, you will make a lot of money, but you would be leaving a lot on the table for potential to change the world.”
“This degree will enable you to do things that you had never done before,” said Senejani.
After the welcoming speeches, the audience was encouraged to play a game of bingo with their tablemates that included questions for them to get to know one another. These questions included ones about favorite kinds of pets, music tastes, where the students are from, among others. Prizes included free shirts and chocolates for the winning tables.
Afterward, there was pizza brought to the audience along with an introduction to the university alumni.
Before allowing current students to ask questions to alumni, Sapi and Senejani guided the audience through several questions on how to network with professionals. They brought up questions such as “what is a day in your life like [at] work,” or “what are your most and least favorite things about working in your position,” or even asking for advice, which the audience opted for.
The biggest piece of advice Sapi and Senejani gave to the students was “get an internship or work-study earlier in the college career, make those connections early, so that way you can form relationships and have a success plan for after graduation.”
If you would like to learn more about the CMBI Graduate Student Association, you can follow them on Charger Connection.