“Without the BSPS program and the undergraduate research I did there, I would not be where I am today, so I’m super grateful for that.”Stephanie Shiffka
Topics Covered
- Pursuing a PhD after graduation from the BSPS program
- Working for the NIH, and what that looks like
- How to get started in a COP lab as an undergraduate
- Skills learned in a molecular biology lab as an undergraduate
- The diversity of research areas we have here in the COP
- Deciding on your career path
Dr. Stephanie J. Shiffka, B.S.P.S. ’15 – Biologist, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute
Stephanie Shiffka graduated from the University of Rhode Island with a Bachelor’s degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences in 2015 and went on to earn her Ph.D. in the same discipline at the University of Maryland, Baltimore in 2021. Dr. Shiffka’s undergraduate research in Dr. Ruitang Deng’s lab ignited a passion for science and laboratory work. During her undergraduate research at URI, Stephanie learned valuable techniques while studying hepatic metabolism, a field she continued to study during her thesis work. Throughout her education, Stephanie authored and co-authored numerous publications and received several awards to support her research. Following the successful defense of her doctoral thesis, Stephanie accepted a Biologist position in Dr. David Schrump’s research laboratory at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland, where she continues to support the lab’s goals of improving patient outcomes in rare forms of lung cancer.
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