The Meander / Articles

Profiles of Recent Graduates

by Chithra Krishnamurthy

Jean Li, a recent PhD in Chemistry, left Pasadena this summer to start at the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) in Washington, DC. While in Professor Grubb's research group, she worked mainly on developing catalysts for asymmetric ring-closing metathesis and chemoselective diene reactions. However, a few years into research, she realized her personality and strengths were somewhat incompatible with the nature of scientific research. Though she identified herself as creative and a problem-solver, she found that she didn't really have any desire to be an expert in such a specific field, and craved more personal interaction than scientific research offered. She realized that she wanted to continue onto a career that could reward her for her strengths in communication. After reviewing a long list of possible careers, she stumbled into consulting when McKinsey invited her to apply for Insight, a program that recruits science and engineering PhDs to participate in a three day workshop on management consulting. Though she never considered herself consultant material, Insight convinced her otherwise. After a whirlwind of interviews, she found herself accepting a position with BCG.

Though it was the jet-setting lifestyle of a consultant that initially drew Jean to interview, she's now most excited about learning new things. Far from being an expert in just one field, she'll be able to work on and get to know various types of cases and problems. However, she will miss the independent and intellectual lifestyle of a graduate student. When asked if she had any advice for students who were contemplating changing careers, she said that a good friend has once told her: “Intelligent people are really great at convincing themselves to continue on a path that is not fulfilling, because they think they can outsmart the part of them that is unhappy – but the smart thing would actually be to try something new. So don’t be afraid to try something new!”

Edward (Ted) Weintrob, a PhD from the Bercaw group, recently joined Conoco-Philips as an associate scientist. When contemplating various career choices, he realized that he wanted more tangible and direct results than was possible in academic chemistry. He sought industry roles for their focus on applicability because he found science in academia bound by overly idealistic and lofty goals that could not often be met in day to day research. Another advantage, in his opinion, included the ability to spend most of his time doing science, rather than splitting his time between research and administrative tasks as a professor. Of course, he didn't mind the increased pay and decreased hours!

However, he does expect that there will be a fair learning curve. While Ted's graduate work focused on homogenous iron catalysis, he will work on heterogeneous catalysis at Conoco. He knows his work ethic and critical-thinking skills will serve him well, but apart from using a few analytical techniques picked up in lab, Ted will be entering an entirely new field. In addition, he expects the work environment to be completely different. Though he generally worked alone with an independent schedule while in graduate school, he will now be part of an interdisciplinary team and held much more accountable for how he spends his time. Though he's sad to leave so many good friends, Ted is excited to begin his new position. He’s especially looking forward to having some time to focus on his hobbies and just living life!