Dorit Donoviel
National Space Biomedical Research Facility
Houston, TX USA
"You hit the roof, the ceiling and you don't feel like you can grow anymore. It's really scary, but I think you have to venture out into a new direction because if you're going to continue in that place you're going to become resentful and you're going to become really unhappy."
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Dorit's work combines: Medicine, Science, and Problem Solving
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Here's the path I took:
High School
Bachelor's Degree
Chemistry, General
University of California-San Diego
Doctorate
Chemistry, General
University of Washington-Seattle Campus
Life & Career Milestones
My path in life has been direct
1.
Immigrated to the U.S. from Israel at age 11; was an "awkward kid," had an accent, "didn't dress right."
2.
Retreated into her studies; realized she was a smart kid, a good student, took pride in that.
3.
Knew she wanted to go into biology when she had to dissect a cow heart in high school-loved it, understood how it worked, explained it to others.
4.
Started working at a pharmaceutical company; while networking, she was offered a position at the National Space Biomedical Research Facility.
5.
Felt like she had "stagnated" after eight years at the pharmaceutical company, so immediately took this new opportunity.
6.
The research facility tries to innovate ways to foster life in space; along the way, it also revolutionizes life for people in rural areas.
7.
Says the biggest mistake students make is to continue studying things they don't love: "you end up with a Ph.D. in chemistry and you're miserable."
8.
"If you're not excited to every day you come to work, stop. It's okay to stop"; says she's grown the guts to walk away if she's not happy.
Defining Moments
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
I was an immigrant, I was born in Israel. I was 11 when I came to the US. I was kind of the awkward kid, I had an accent, I didn't dress right.
I was the first in my family to go to college. For me I sort of escaped into the learning and the science.