Profile

Candidate CV questions (extra)

• Education:

  I went to a tiny private school called Horizon Christian School from kindergarten until eighth grade. I switched to North Forsyth High School, where I took every nerdy class I could to learn as much as I could- except for physics, because physics scares me. I even took Latin!

  I went to college (uni) at the University of Georgia, and I chose to study Genetics and Plant Biology just because a plant biology professor had been kind enough to give me a tour and talk to me. I found a research lab to work in and studied the population genetics of orchids and pitcher plants- basically, how different groups were different from each other. I loved doing this work, and it helped me know that I (1) definitely liked plants and (2) liked genetics, but only as a tool to understand the bigger picture.

  After I graduated from college with my Bachelor’s, I “moved” to Italy to study a Master’s in sustainable agriculture. I say “moved” because I was in Italy for two weeks before I decided I hated agriculture, quit the program, and moved back home, all before classes had even started. Looking back, I think I talked myself into trying agriculture because the jobs pay well, not because I was ever really interested in it.

  Now I’m here in Edinburgh starting my PhD! I technically study at the University of Edinburgh, but I work at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. I’m loving living abroad, being able to walk places, and meeting so many wonderful people who know so much. I think I’m really going to enjoy my PhD.

  

• Qualifications:

  I’m from the US, so I had something called AP classes. These were advanced classes taught at a university level, and if you scored well enough on an end-of-year exam, you could get uni-level credit. I took a lot of them, so I haven’t listed them here- but it was a little of everything.

  I only have a couple official qualifications:

  • Bachelor’s of Science, Genetics
    • summa cum laude, Highest Honors
  • Bachelor’s of Science, Plant Biology: plant biotechnology and bioinformatics
    • summa cum laude, Highest Honors

• Work History:

  In my senior year of high school, I had an internship at my local library working with younger kids, because I knew that I loved books. This was my first time working in something educational, and I found out I do not like presenting in front of people- but I do like helping people learn.

  One summer during uni, I worked in Colorado looking at what types of plants grew at different heights on the mountains. This taught me that I loved to work outside, even with swarms of fire ants and mosquitoes. The mountain views weren’t bad, either!

  

  During spring semester one year, I worked in an ecology lab helping prepare sea turtle egg samples for DNA testing. The work was simple- lots of folding up bits of soft eggshell (after the babies hatched, don’t worry!!!) and putting it into tubes. It was cool to know my work was helping people learn about how big the sea turtle populations are, though.

  After uni, I worked briefly as a lab chemist testing if meat was clean or if it had bacteria. I only worked here to earn money before moving to Italy; being honest, I hated it! The work was too repetitive and I didn’t feel like I was accomplishing anything.

  I found a different job in Massachusetts, in the northeastern US- very snowy- as an outdoor educator. Basically, I worked at a during-school ‘summer camp’ where schools would visit for a week and learn all about science and the environment. I spent most of my time hiking in the woods teaching kids about nature, and I loved it. This was the first time I really enjoyed teaching, and I realized how fun it could be to see other people get excited about the things you love.

  

• Current Job:

  PhD student

• Employer:

  University of Edinburgh/Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh