Shoba Subramanian, Ph.D.
Current: Principal University Partnerships Manager, Amazon ---- Past: Associate Clinical Professor, Cell & Developmental Biology Director of Curriculum & Educational Initiatives Office of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (OGPS) University of Michigan Assistant Department Head, Biological Sciences, Assistant Teaching Professor, Carnegie Mellon University LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/shobasubramanian/ |
I grew up in a middle class family in Mumbai, India. As a child, I constantly questioned the superstitions and beliefs around me, but never got answers, and if I did, they did not make sense to me. In fact, I was asked many a time to stop questioning. This motivated me to pursue an undergraduate degree in science, as it was clear that in science both questioning and reasoning were welcome.
I completed my B.Sc. in Microbiology, as a first generation college degree holder, at Ramnarain Ruia College, University of Mumbai. I then completed my M.Sc. degree in Molecular Biology at the University of Madras (now known as Chennai). After my M.Sc. degree, I spent a couple of months submitting PhD applications to a handful of US universities. Following this I worked as a Junior Research Fellow at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore for 8-9 months. In 1999, I started my PhD in at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) in Pittsburgh, PA. I chose a thesis lab with a female-advisor, and studied yeast membrane trafficking. I then pursued postdoctoral training at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) uncovering the basic biology of the malarial parasite. Following that I studied pH response in yeast at CMU. During my training at UCSF, I enrolled in science communication, pedagogy, and experiential teaching programs to prepare myself for an education career. At CMU, I founded the Scientific Speaking Skills course in 2009 (while still a postdoc). In 2011, I was hired by CMU's Biological Sciences Department as a faculty member and an administrative leader. Since then, I have been in many leadership and innovative roles in higher education. I have developed and taught many science and professional skills courses, worked on several aspects of modernizing higher education via inclusive practices and curricular reform, while also mentoring and advising trainees for academic and career success at Carnegie Mellon University (2011-17) and the University of Michigan (2017-22). At Michigan I work in cross functional domains of graduate and postdoc training, using a scholarly approach. I founded and led a robust team on career & professional development programming, co-led curriculum and mentorship transformational initiatives with extramural and intramural grant support. I liaised and served on several campus and national committees for higher education as well as diversity, equity, and inclusion. Now, I work at Amazon building university research and DEI partnerships. A fun fact about my career journey is that every position I've had, has been an inaugural position with no predecessors or precedence. And, the challenges and the triumphs of trailblazing are many! |