The Pulse

Sabrina Pires '24 began her Ph.D. program at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill in August 2024, shortly after she graduated from Emmanuel. As an undergraduate, she got the opportunity to try out research - even when she wasn't sure if she would pursue it as a career. Without that opportunity, she said she might never have discovered the passion for research that set her on the path to a Ph.D., and her combined majors, neuroscience and biology, proved to be foundational for the next step in her education. "I never feel lost in my classes as it talks through cellular/molecular dynamics to genetic dispositions and behavior models. I feel really prepared despite being one of the younger people in my program," she said.

Keren Santanello '20 is currently enrolled in her Ph.D. program at Harvard University, where she is doing research focused on neuroimmunology. As a first-gen undergraduate and graduate student, she said that pursuing a science degree and aiming for Harvard often felt unattainable - but through her dedication and a foundation of mentorship, research opportunities and access to resources, she is now fully underway on that dream. “The supportive community at Emmanuel gave me the confidence to pursue ambitious goals, and the well-rounded curriculum ensured that I graduated with not just technical expertise, but also the communication and critical thinking skills for a multidisciplinary fields like neuroimmunology," Santanello said.

After working as a clinical assistant at Boston Children's Hospital for two years, Hannah Sullivan '22 began working towards her Ph.D. in biostatistics at Boston University. Sullivan went into her Emmanuel journey knowing she wanted to pursue statistics, but said the blend of liberal arts and sciences at the College allowed her to explore different applications of the humanities. Because of that, she graduated having explored a number of topics - like infectious diseases, economics and philosophy - and having visualized the many ways she can use her statistics knowledge in a variety of real-world applications.

Carrie Rodriguez '21 joined the MIT Biology Ph.D. program in 2023 and aims to one day be a professor. From her time at Emmanuel, she lists her humanities-based course load as one of the most crucial takeaways: helping to develop her problem solving and communication skills. “There is inherent value in the humanities,” Rodriguez said, “a scientist without regard to ethics, literature or the broader world is limited in perspective and risks overlooking the societal impact of their work.” Rodriguez began doing research at Emmanuel as a first-year, and eventually won a Goldwater Scholarship in 2020. “The award, made possible by the biology department’s belief in me, opened many doors for me as a young scientist. I remain close to several of my professors from Emmanuel, who I now consider to be lifelong mentors,” Rodriguez said.

Emma Stevens' '22 interest in computational chemistry bloomed at Emmanuel, where she became determined to find a way to combine chemistry and computer science into a career path. Now enrolled in a Ph.D. program at Northeastern University's Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, she is doing just that. As an undergraduate, she saw Emmanuel's small class sizes as a true advantage, helping her form lasting connections with professors and receiving personalized mentorship. Now it's translated into her Ph.D. program, where she has always felt incredibly prepared. "If anything, my time in graduate school has left me even more impressed with the quality of education I received at Emmanuel," Stevens said.

One of the best decisions Rylie Bolarinho ’22 thinks she made at Emmanuel College was joining Professor of Chemistry Dr. Aren Gerdon’s research group. Not only was it where she discovered her passion for chemistry, but the incredible support from the Chemistry department helped her to flourish as a student. “They knew us and cared about how we were doing. I wasn’t just a name in the classroom,” Bolarinho said. Now at Boston University, her research group uses advanced microscopy to study the chemical fingerprint of diseases. She didn't go into the program with a ton of experience on that specific topic, but said she still had all the tools she needed thanks to her extensive research experience at Emmanuel.

As a neuroscience major and psychology minor at Emmanuel, Sydney Iacoi '20 made sure to follow advice she received from alumni to prioritize research and clinical experience to bolster her resume. Now while enrolled in a clinical psychology Ph.D. program at the University of Rhode Island, Iacoi has since returned to Emmanuel to echo that same advice to current students. A number of those hands-on experiences, like working in a research lab at Harvard University, an internship at a pediatric neuropsychologist's private practice and more helped pave her way toward being accepted into a Ph.D. program. "Through my classes and great mentorship, I was able to gain the knowledge I needed to form my career goals and aspirations," Iacoi said.

For Shane Mitchell '21, one of the most formative experiences he had at Emmanuel College was listening to a talk given by Associate Professor of Biology Anupama Seshan, Ph.D., where he first learned about what it takes to earn a Ph.D. and how to get involved in faculty research on campus. From there, his research at Emmanuel guided his interest in exploring research as a career. "I will always be grateful for being able to attend Emmanuel," Mitchell said, "the class sizes allowed me to get to know the professors and learn more about the paths they had taken to get where they are today – and being able to learn from them gave me invaluable insight on how I would need to proceed to shape my future,” Mitchell said.