Reflecting on MBP Before Graduation

Maya Halthore enrolled in Northwestern Engineering's Master of Biotechnology program (MBP) because she was drawn to the program's focus on research. To her, it feels like just yesterday that she started in the program. Instead, she is now just days away from graduation.

When she leaves Northwestern, Halthore will begin working as a strategy consultant at Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC). Before that happens and before she receives her diploma, Halthore took time to reflect on her MBP experience, including what she learned and how she was able to take advantage of the program's various research opportunities.

What's been the favorite part of your MBP experience?

My favorite part has been getting to know the unique individuals associated with the program and their exciting career paths. Everyone — from advanced professionals to my fellow cohort members — is so passionate about their work, so I ended up learning a lot about what's out there to explore with your degree.

How do you feel you've grown, both personally and professionally, during your time in the program?

Over the last couple of years, I have definitely become more confident in my decisions. I used to think that I had to know exactly what I wanted to do (whether to solve a problem or more broadly about concepts like what to do with my life) so that I could create a plan to follow through and accomplish. However, I found myself struggling to start anything because I wasn't sure that I had the right solution.

Now I'm more confident in my ability to be flexible and adapt to unforeseen issues so I'm able to get things going sooner based off of my initial decisions. I learned this from watching my peers and professors approach issues in their own work. This trickled down into not only my professional decisions but in my personal life. When I was deciding where to live after graduating, I was worried that I hadn't considered every angle of what makes for the best location. However, I stuck with Chicago and now I'm able to get started on establishing a network of friends much sooner than if I had deliberated longer.

What are two of the most important lessons you've learned during your time in MBP?

1. I feel like after completing the MBP program I am more outgoing in professional and social settings. Having a cohort of my peers to bounce ideas off of taught me to fearlessly ask questions and that I don't have to always have the immediate answer to be a productive member of a team. It was an amazing place to collaborate with other students who are passionate about a variety of subjects.

2.  The bioprocess engineering courses gave me a whole new framework in which to approach and address problems. I feel a lot more prepared to systematically develop a solution to most problems with a limited set of resources than before I took those classes.

How do you think your time in MBP prepared you for your new job with PwC?

I'm not sure yet, but I would say that I've learned how to research topics I didn't know much about before for relevant information and to find a meaningful way to communicate and present that information in a short timeline.

Now that it's been a few months, how important would you say your internship with Deloitte was to your overall MBP experience?

The internship for me was extremely valuable. It not only helped me narrow down the scope of what kind of work I wanted to do after graduating, but it also was a huge motivation for me to see how I would be using the knowledge I gained during the program in my career and it influenced my course choices for the remainder of the program. Recognizing gaps in my knowledge during the course of the internship motivated me to take different kinds of courses that I wouldn't have otherwise.

What was your research focused on and why did you make that choice?

I did my research at a company called Exicure working with their proprietary molecule: the Spherical Nucleic Acid (SNA). For me, it was really important to understand what it is like to work in a smaller-scale commercial lab rather than an academic lab because I wanted to know if I wanted to work in research and development for a career. Working at a small company exposed me to many different parts of the production process and gave me a strong understanding of possible careers in therapeutics development.

What surprised you most about your MBP experience?

How fast the time flew by! It felt like just yesterday that I was deliberating joining MBP and moving to Evanston and now I'm already finished with the program. I feel like I have accomplished and experienced so many things in this incredibly short time.