In this episode, Sujani sits down with Monica Villarruel, a research scientist for the state of California. They discuss Monica’s experience working as a research scientist outside of academia and how Monica was able to overcome the various challenges throughout her academic and professional journey.
You’ll Learn
- How Monica found her way into the public health field from nutrition
- Why Monica decided to pursue an MPH and the challenges she faced going back to school
- How state research differs from research within academia and what a day in the life of a state research scientist looks like
- Monica’s work with maternal and infant health and what other areas of research or opportunities are available
- What skills may be beneficial to have for anyone interested in research outside of academia
- Monica’s struggles with monotony in the workplace and how she was able to pull herself out of a rut
- How surrounding yourself with mentors and a support network is essential in your career journey
- What new developments are coming up for Monica
Today’s Guest
Resources
- Follow Monica on Linkedin
- Read more about the Pregnancy Risk Assessment and Monitoring System and the Maternal and Infant Health Assessment
- Learn more about the Women, Infants, and Children program
- Learn more about the Worthy Women organization
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