Stories from the Field

For Wendy Young Reed, life is too short for disliking a job. To find a career you enjoy, she says, the key is to network the old-fashioned way: without a computer.

When navigating the career path, advises Cynthia Palmer, make sure the jobs you take are the ones you actually want. She talks about the importance of confidence, taking small steps, and getting a copy of the job description.

It was a tough decision, she says, but Terri Taylor left grad school to become a high-school chemistry teacher. She talks about the importance of following your passion and taking your career one step at a time.

Mary Kirchhoff didn’t go about her education the usual way: she had four children before pursuing her Ph.D. She talks about what was “the most organized time” of her life and the importance of sticking to goals.

Marinda Wu chose her particular graduate program because she wanted to work for a famous professor. But when she arrived, she was told the professor didn’t accept female students.

Women chemists who are also trying to raise a family can get a lot of heat, even from other women, says Bevin Parks. It helps, she says, to get to know and understand those women who are pushing back—ideally over dinner and drinks.

In the face of harassment, Isabel Escobar learned the hard-earned lesson of standing up for herself. From men assuming she had a temper and could “blow at any minute” to being called “little lady,” she talks about the challenges of being a Latina woman in a male-dominated field.

When Kathryn Lysko began her undergraduate work, there were 15,000 men and 100 women in her entire college. She talks about the camaraderie that emerged among the women students, her proudest career moments, and the tough choices facing women who want both a family and an academic career.  

Without mentors, says Judith Iriarte-Gross, she would have never become a chemist. She talks about the importance of encouragement, the necessity of taking science classes early on in school, and how the periodic table is like a candy store.

In a small town in South Carolina, chemistry students at a high school were doing accomplished, innovative work—yet no one was paying attention. Denise Creech talks about one of her proudest moments: fighting to get them recognition.