The September 21 event featured career-oriented panel discussions, technical poster sessions, and employer networking opportunities.

Patel took part in the Ph.D. Pathways to Industry Panel and, with Kelly Johnson, the Lab’s outreach manager, met with graduate students and postdoctoral researchers to discuss career opportunities at the Lab.

“It was very gratifying to speak to an amazing group of graduate students and post-doctoral researchers about career path opportunities at LBNL and other national labs that offer both a research focus and a chance to mentor others and build teams,” says Patel. “They were eager to learn about non-academic career paths that allow them to utilize their research training as they explore long-term career options.”

The setting was familiar ground for Patel. After earning her doctorate in molecular biology at the University of California, Riverside, she was a postdoctoral scholar at UCSB. She has maintained ties with the school through her subsequent career in biotech and then at the Lab