Ask a Behavioral Neuroscience Alum about careers in graduate school, health care, and industry

Saturday, October 8th

Academic West Skybridge

2:00 PM Panel Discussion

3:00 PM Networking Social

Open to all Western Students

Presented by Behavioral Neuroscience Alumni
Nicole Bazar-BNS Graduate June 2013, Attending MEDEX Physicians Assistant Program UW

I am currently attending the MEDEX Physician Assistant Program at the University of Washington. So far, I have completed two quarters of the program and have two years to go! I am fortunate that my daily agenda of 8-hour class days includes 52 other amazing classmates and an abundance of phenomenal resources, including dedicated faculty, inspiring guest lecturers and world class clinicians. My experience getting to PA school and the start of the PA program has been fantastic! Prior to graduate school, I worked as a phlebotomist and EMT to gain clinical skills in order to embark on this amazing journey. It is motivating to know that all of the hard work and energy I have put into this process will directly benefit my patients in the future.

Jennifer Bode, BNS Graduate June 2011 R. EEG T.

I am a board certified Neurodiagnostic Technologist at Peacehealth St Joseph Hospital, currently in my position for 5 years. I perform Neurodiagnostic testing including Electroencephalography (EEG), Somatosensory Evoked Potentials, Visual and Brainstem Auditory Evoked Potentials, and Nerve Conduction Studies, in the hospital and Neurology out-patient clinic. From tiny infants to geriatrics, I love interacting with patients and using biotechnology to make a difference in course of treatment.

Previous Experience: Histologist in Immunohistochemistry and Immunofluorescence, Northwest Pathology/St Joseph Hospital, 1996-2006

Fiona Griffin-BNS Graduate December 2014, Research Associate Paul Allen Institute

I am employed as a Research Associate at the Allen Institute for Brain Science since April 2015. I contribute to multiple projects at the Allen Institute, but one of my main contributions is to gather two-photon optical physiology data for the Allen Brain Observatory. I operate and optimize multiple imaging platforms, track and analyze data, create documentation and work in a team to solve issues. My favorite part of my job is the problem solving – how to handle the hardware issues that arise and how to interpret data and use that feedback to increase the quality of our output.

Previous Experience: Neurobiology of Drug and Food Addiction, 2013-2015; Animal Technician, 2013-2015

Andrea Schiller-BNS Graduate 2014 , Dental Student at the University of Washington

I am currently in my 3rd year of the 4-year DDS program at the University of Washington School of Dentistry, which I entered directly after graduating from WWU. My experience with the Behavioral Neuroscience program has provided me with invaluable background knowledge and hands-on lab experience that has complimented my continuing education in the field of dentistry.

Previous experience:  Researched the Neurobiology of Schizophrenia with Drs. Mana and Finlay 2010-2014; WWU NeRDS Outreach Coordinator 2014; WWU Pre-Dental Club President 2012-2014; UW Treasurer of the Hispanic Student Dental Association, 2016-2017

Rachel Weber-BNS Graduate 2012, PhD Candidate at the Medical University of South Carolina

I am currently a PhD candidate at MUSC in Charleston, SC and will graduate December 2016. My work has focused on experience-dependent brain plasticity and functional recovery after stroke. I used learning-induced neural plasticity with pharmacological treatments to drive motor recovery after injury. Secondly, to better translate my basic research results into clinically relevant treatments I used diffusion MRI to characterize acute and chronic stroke recovery. I have enjoyed my time at MUSC, the process of obtaining a PhD, and establishing collaborations.

Analiesse (Isherwood) Carter, BNS Graduate June 2011, Tacoma Family Medicine Resident

After graduating from WWU, I went on to attend and graduate from the University of Washington School of Medicine.  I am currently a 2nd year resident physician at Tacoma Family Medicine.  After I complete my 3 years of residency training, I plan to move to a rural area where I will practice “full spectrum family medicine”, to include the practice of obstetrics.  I love my career because I get to combine scientific thinking with direct compassionate patient care, I get to work with people of all ages and both genders, and I get to be an intimate part of families’ most critical life events – both the difficult, and the celebratory.

Previous Experience: Neurobiology Research Assistant with Dr. Janet Finlay 2009 – 2011, WWU 2011 College of Sciences & Technology Presidential Scholar (Valedictorian), University of Washington School of Medicine Targeted Rural Under-Served Track (TRUST program) 2011 – 2015, Rhodes Scholar finalist, Founder of educational organization in rural Haiti.

Nicole Nobles Fisher, BNS Graduate Fall 2015, TMS Clinician

I work one on one with patients 5 days a week over a 6-8 week period. During each session I assess the patient for changes in mood, anxiety, sleep etc, then administer TMS therapy as prescribed for that specific patient’s needs. We clinicians meet with the five psychiatrists once a week to discuss any patient concerns, and learn more about the field.