2022 Mentoring Pilot Project - Mentees

Daniel Morrison

Mentee
Current UCI graduate degree program, intended degree and expected graduation term:
Mathematics Ph.D.; Spring 2023-Spring 2024
 
Professional aspirations:
Most likely I will go into industry. Right now I am thinking about jobs that utilize my teaching skills and involve communicating math. I have broad interests in the use of math and also studied physics, economics, and computer science as an undergrad so using those skills would be nice as well. I’d like a career which lets me do lots of different things over time.
 
Top three goals you hope to accomplish with a Graduate Alumni Mentor in this program:
1. Learning about non-traditional career paths in math / math education
2. Learning about skills/knowledge that are useful after graduation
3. Expanding my professional network
 
Hobbies/activities you enjoy outside of your academic life:
I enjoy video and board games and would love to design my own someday. I am also interested in tennis, music composition, and digital/math art.

Caroline Martinez

Mentee
Current UCI graduate degree program, intended degree and expected graduation term:
PhD in Sociology, 2025
 
Professional aspirations:
I would like to be a professor and researcher. I am not sure in what type of institution I would like to teach yet.
 
Top three goals you hope to accomplish with a Graduate Alumni Mentor in this program:
I hope to learn about my mentor’s career path and become more aware of the steps I need to be taking now in order to become a professor and publish my research.
 
Hobbies/activities you enjoy outside of your academic life:
I enjoying going on runs by the beach, dancing salsa, reading novels, and hiking.

Victoria Rodriguez

Mentee
Current UCI graduate degree program, intended degree and expected graduation term:
PhD in Public Health; Expected Spring 2023 or Spring 2024
 
Professional aspirations:
After graduating from UCI I hope to find a post-doc position to help me obtain my long-term goal of being a tenured faculty member at an R1 university.
 
Top three goals you hope to accomplish with a Graduate Alumni Mentor in this program:
1) Identify skills I should be developing to make myself a competitive post-doc
2) Identifying which type of post-doc positions I should be focused on applying to
3) “Hidden-curriculum” that exists in post-doc and faculty positions
 
Hobbies/activities you enjoy outside of your academic life:
Listening to music/attending live music events; Watching movies and television; Dodgers baseball!

Genesis Mazariegos

Mentee

Current UCI graduate degree program, intended degree and expected graduation term:
Global Studies PhD, 2026

Professional aspirations:
I want to become a professor, maybe study law and work in a nonprofit or the legal sphere for some time. Public policy is also something that I’m interested in exploring after my graduate degree.

Top three goals you hope to accomplish with a Graduate Alumni Mentor in this program:
It would be nice to discuss potential career choices so that I can start planning what to do now. With my Graduate Mentor, I would also discuss navigating grad school and what to do to better position myself in the academic or other industries.

Hobbies/activities you enjoy outside of your academic life:
I enjoy playing badminton, watching anime or TV series, exploring new foods and traveling
Mentee

Rodger de Miranda

Current UCI graduate degree program, intended degree and expected graduation term:
I’m in the Molecular Biology and Biochemistry PhD program which will give me a PhD in Biological Sciences. I expect to graduate at the end of Spring Quarter 2023.

Professional aspirations:
I aspire to join the workforce in industry when I graduate, specifically in Seattle WA so that I can be closer to my new nephew!

Top three goals you hope to accomplish with a Graduate Alumni Mentor in this program:
1) To touch base with someone who has done it, made it to industry learn about their path and get ideas for careers that I could potentially aspire to start. 2) To start/work on developing different professional assets (CV, headshot, etc) to be competitive in the job market. 3) To begin working on a gameplan for how to approach job interviews and applications and things of that nature.

Hobbies/activities you enjoy outside of your academic life:
Outside of my academic life I love reading, playing video games, and hanging out with my husband and cats. I love reading so much, I have actually begun YouTube and Instagram accounts to share my love of the books I read and get to connect with other readers.
Mentee

Stephanie Orchanian

Current UCI graduate degree program, intended degree and expected graduation term:
Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, PhD in Biological Sciences in June 2023

Professional aspirations:
Once I graduate, I’m hoping to get a post doc in the field of neuroimmunology, in the long term I hope to become a professor with my own lab.

Top three goals you hope to accomplish with a Graduate Alumni Mentor in this program:
how to apply for post docs, what non-scientific skills jobs look for that I should be working on/ways I can work on them.

Hobbies/activities you enjoy outside of your academic life:
Outside of work, you can find me watching Netflix (typically comedies), playing video games (currently going through monster hunters!), or spending time with friends (usually seeing a small group by going hiking or seeing a lot of friends at happy hours)
Mentee

Connie Valencia

Current UCI graduate degree program, intended degree and expected graduation term:
PhD Public Health, June 2023

Professional aspirations:
Currently I am planning to apply to a post doc that will allow me to receive additional training in community based research. In addition, I hope to apply to NIH, EPA grants that will help me advance in my dissertation research focused on air pollution and environmental justice.

Top three goals you hope to accomplish with a Graduate Alumni Mentor in this program:
1) Network with other students and mentors 2) Discuss professional development goals and plans 3) Identify and address potential challenges in career advancement as a parent.

Hobbies/activities you enjoy outside of your academic life:
I enjoy spending time with my family, cooking, baking and traveling.
Mentee

Adriana Meza Soria

Current UCI graduate degree program, intended degree and expected graduation term:
Ph.D in Software Engineering, summer 2022

Professional aspirations:
I love research and would like to become a professor in future.

Top three goals you hope to accomplish with a Graduate Alumni Mentor in this program:
Networking with UCI alumni, finding a career role model, being informed about life in academia (challenges, perils).

Hobbies/activities you enjoy outside of your academic life:
I’m from Tijuana, Mexico, I love having interesting conversations about life, and I love dancing Cuban salsa.
Mentee

Yenda Prado Giovanatto

Current UCI graduate degree program, intended degree and expected graduation term:
PhD School of Education, summer 2022

Professional aspirations:
I will be conducting both an industry (edtech, UX, curriculum/assessment, digital media) and an academic (TT position, post doc in education) job search after graduation in June 2022.

Top three goals you hope to accomplish with a Graduate Alumni Mentor in this program:
1) approach and positioning in an industry job search, 2) approach and positioning in an academic job search, 3) mentorship/support in my writing endeavors as I complete the initial draft of a book I am writing for MIT press

Hobbies/activities you enjoy outside of your academic life:
I enjoy reading, traveling, wine tasting, film, culture, going to the beach and hiking. When I’m not on adventures with my 10 year old, conversation over a great glass of wine with good friends is the best!
Mentee

Xiaowen Zhu

Current UCI graduate degree program, intended degree and expected graduation term:
Mathematics, PhD, 2022 Spring.

Professional aspirations:
Academic positions.

Top three goals you hope to accomplish with a Graduate Alumni Mentor in this program:
Broaden my vision of other people’s post-PhD life. If possible, maybe I’d like some experience or suggestions on how to be successful on research, how to get a tenure track or so.

Hobbies/activities you enjoy outside of your academic life:
Walking, hardcore gaming.
Mentee

Jinghao Chen

Current UCI graduate degree program, intended degree and expected graduation term:
Mathematics, PhD, 2023 or 2024

Professional aspirations:
Research position, Postdoctoral position

Top three goals you hope to accomplish with a Graduate Alumni Mentor in this program:
(1) more clear future goal in order to get prepared (2) get ready for job application after graduation (3) ready for a recent research internship (4) I’m also struggling on my first paper.

Hobbies/activities you enjoy outside of your academic life:
Learn new languages (I’m learning Japanese now), running (half marathon and maybe try it in full soon), anime, Texas hold’m, hotpot, dim sum, etc.
Mentee

Joseph Hin Yan Lam

Current UCI graduate degree program, intended degree and expected graduation term:
PhD in Education (2026)

Professional aspirations:
Tenure-track assistant professor

Top three goals you hope to accomplish with a Graduate Alumni Mentor in this program:
How to prepare for academic jobs, academic networking strategies, research team management

Hobbies/activities you enjoy outside of your academic life:
I love doing sports, visiting art galleries and museums. I also enjoy cooking.
Mentee

Jung Soo Lee

Current UCI graduate degree program, intended degree and expected graduation term:
English phD 5th year, expect to graduate oct. 2023

Professional aspirations:
Academic, research, teaching

Top three goals you hope to accomplish with a Graduate Alumni Mentor in this program:
Find a job that will allow me to get green card, explore career options,

Hobbies/activities you enjoy outside of your academic life:
Iaido, martial arts, baking,
Mentee

Toni Hays

Current UCI graduate degree program, intended degree and expected graduation term:
English, Spring 2023

Professional aspirations:
I want to enter into academia. I am most interested in sustaining and building networks for success through university for first-generation student. I am also interested in building programming to continue support for racial, gender, and class equity.

Top three goals you hope to accomplish with a Graduate Alumni Mentor in this program:
I want to be able to build in skills for interviewing on the academic job market. I would also like to build skills for communicating my skill set across a variety of hiring departments. I would also appreciate mentorship about navigating academic as a Woman of Color. It’s more lately that I’ve noticed that despite the political commitments individuals might sustain, the expectations of academia are not made for the success of minoritized communities.

Hobbies/activities you enjoy outside of your academic life:
I have been studying martial arts for 18 years. I hold a black belt in kenpo juijitsu and regularly train MMA. Exercise is a really critical part of my life and is a way that I manage anxiety and depression. I really appreciate good food and really love trying new recipes. I find it hard not to blur my research interests and my personal interests in home renovation shows.
Mentee

Whitney Schmanski

Current UCI graduate degree program, intended degree and expected graduation term:
MFA Dance, 2022

Professional aspirations:
Continue with dance performance and creation, as well as continuing scholarly studies.

Top three goals you hope to accomplish with a Graduate Alumni Mentor in this program:
Learn ways to stay engaged with scholarly work, to meet people who have done interdisciplinary work, discuss career engagements that I might have not thought of prior.

Hobbies/activities you enjoy outside of your academic life:
photography, walking, science, swimming, health and nutrition, museums!
Mentee

Jiali Wang

Current UCI graduate degree program, intended degree and expected graduation term:
PhD in education, HDiC, expected to graduate in 2024

Professional aspirations:
The reason I want to apply for this program is because I have been in a constant struggle of my professional aspirations. I have spent a lot of time thinking about whether I should go into industry or academics but have a hard time to make a decision — this challenge also has been impacting me in my daily learning. It’s hard for proceed with my program without a clear career goal.

Top three goals you hope to accomplish with a Graduate Alumni Mentor in this program:
Understanding career options; set career goals; making learning goals towards my career goals

Hobbies/activities you enjoy outside of your academic life:
I spend a lot of time in my spare time watching TV series (my favorite being The Big Bang Theory), traveling. I also play piano when I can.
Mentee

Frankie Henderson

Current UCI graduate degree program, intended degree and expected graduation term:
MFA – Dance. Graduation term Spring of 2023

Professional aspirations:
To teach at a university within a dance department.

Top three goals you hope to accomplish with a Graduate Alumni Mentor in this program:
1. To expand my network and make connections. 2. To gain support in areas I am unfamiliar with in term of applying to jobs and gaining professional experience. 3. To seek council on my thesis research writing.

Hobbies/activities you enjoy outside of your academic life:
I am very interested in anything health and fitness related. I love getting outside and being active in the mountains or in the water. And playing with my pup at the park.
Mentee

Xiaochen Liu

Current UCI graduate degree program, intended degree and expected graduation term:
PhD in Bioinformatics, Winter 2023

Professional aspirations:
Possibly going to industry

Top three goals you hope to accomplish with a Graduate Alumni Mentor in this program:
1. Have a good understanding on mentor’s work field.
2. Get advice on my PhD program
3. Get advice on my future career plan

Hobbies/activities you enjoy outside of your academic life:
I like to eat and cook. I use cooking as a way to relieve my stress. The more stress, the more complex of the dish I choose to cook.