Irit Rappley
Interview Posted By: Ashley Smith
1. Can you tell us a little about your background? i.e. Where you grew up, what education do you have, a summary of your resume, did you always want to do what you are doing now, when did you start to become interested in STEM, what internships/ volunteering
This is a long one. I grew up in Colorado, went to public school, wanted to study math and computer science. I took some time off between high school and college, and I think this was a very important time in my life that helped me figure out what I wanted to do. Then I went to MIT and double-majored in brain & cognitive science, and linguistics. Going in, I thought I wanted to study how the brain learns language. But when I started really thinking about a career, it was clear to me that I wanted to do something to help people -- and when studying the brain, that means studying brain disorders. As a junior and senior I took classes on how the brain works and what happens when it doesn't work well, and I worked in a research lab that investigated Alzheimer's disease. But it became clear to me that I really wanted to understand WHY people get sick, and so I needed to understand how the cells of the brain work. So for graduate school I chose the Harvard Program in Neuroscience, where I studied molecular cellular neuroscience. I learned a lot and got closer to asking the kinds of questions that I am passionate about, but I was still missing something -- what happens inside the cells. So for my postdoctoral research I went to The Scripps Research Institute and studied protein folding and misfolding. Today I work at a biotech company, developing drugs for cancer. I told you this long story because I want you to see that you don't need to have a master plan when you're 18. What's important is being curious and open and willing to follow that curiosity to new places.
2. What exactly IS your job? What do you do on a day to day basis?
I help develop drugs for cancer. I work mostly with cells in a dish, treating them with test molecules to see which ones kill cancer cells but not regular cells, or how the molecules work, or other question that are important for drug development.
3. How does STEM relate to your job?How do you use the information you learned from your degree in your job?
I think I've already answered this -- my whole job IS science!
4. Have you faced any discrimination/ challenges being a woman in a stem field? If so, how did you deal with it? Do you have any advice for up and coming women in STEM?
I don't think I have faced discrimination as a woman in the field. I think we all need to be aware of the biases we face and the biases we hold (some of the worst offenders in terms of discrimination against women are other women). But I don't have any concrete advice.
5. What is the best and worst part of your job? What do you look forward to in your job on a day to day basis? What do you wish you could change?
I love the feeling that what I am doing today could help someone live longer in just a few years. I also love the challenges of science. Every experiment is a chance to understand something new, if you know how to ask the right questions.
6. How do you balance your work and personal life? Any secrets or advice you’d like to share?
The best advice I ever got about work-life balance is this: when you're at home, be 100% at home and don't feel guilty for not being at work. And when you're at work, be 100% at work and don't feel guilty for not being at home. It's not always easy to follow but it's good advice.
7. What do you define success as?
For me, success is doing what you love -- usually that means more than one thing.
8. What is one personality trait that you think is universally important for a successful career?
Self-awareness.
9. Who was a mentor to you throughout your career? (can be more than one!) What did they teach you? How did they impact your life?
I had lots of mentors, men and women. Each taught me something different, but they all helped me become who I am today. The thing about mentors is that (at least for me) you don't know in advance who they're going to be, it's a relationship that develops over time.
10. What do you think is the best advice you've ever received ? What advice would you give your younger self if you had the chance? What’s one piece of advice you can pass on to us?
See #6 above.
This is a long one. I grew up in Colorado, went to public school, wanted to study math and computer science. I took some time off between high school and college, and I think this was a very important time in my life that helped me figure out what I wanted to do. Then I went to MIT and double-majored in brain & cognitive science, and linguistics. Going in, I thought I wanted to study how the brain learns language. But when I started really thinking about a career, it was clear to me that I wanted to do something to help people -- and when studying the brain, that means studying brain disorders. As a junior and senior I took classes on how the brain works and what happens when it doesn't work well, and I worked in a research lab that investigated Alzheimer's disease. But it became clear to me that I really wanted to understand WHY people get sick, and so I needed to understand how the cells of the brain work. So for graduate school I chose the Harvard Program in Neuroscience, where I studied molecular cellular neuroscience. I learned a lot and got closer to asking the kinds of questions that I am passionate about, but I was still missing something -- what happens inside the cells. So for my postdoctoral research I went to The Scripps Research Institute and studied protein folding and misfolding. Today I work at a biotech company, developing drugs for cancer. I told you this long story because I want you to see that you don't need to have a master plan when you're 18. What's important is being curious and open and willing to follow that curiosity to new places.
2. What exactly IS your job? What do you do on a day to day basis?
I help develop drugs for cancer. I work mostly with cells in a dish, treating them with test molecules to see which ones kill cancer cells but not regular cells, or how the molecules work, or other question that are important for drug development.
3. How does STEM relate to your job?How do you use the information you learned from your degree in your job?
I think I've already answered this -- my whole job IS science!
4. Have you faced any discrimination/ challenges being a woman in a stem field? If so, how did you deal with it? Do you have any advice for up and coming women in STEM?
I don't think I have faced discrimination as a woman in the field. I think we all need to be aware of the biases we face and the biases we hold (some of the worst offenders in terms of discrimination against women are other women). But I don't have any concrete advice.
5. What is the best and worst part of your job? What do you look forward to in your job on a day to day basis? What do you wish you could change?
I love the feeling that what I am doing today could help someone live longer in just a few years. I also love the challenges of science. Every experiment is a chance to understand something new, if you know how to ask the right questions.
6. How do you balance your work and personal life? Any secrets or advice you’d like to share?
The best advice I ever got about work-life balance is this: when you're at home, be 100% at home and don't feel guilty for not being at work. And when you're at work, be 100% at work and don't feel guilty for not being at home. It's not always easy to follow but it's good advice.
7. What do you define success as?
For me, success is doing what you love -- usually that means more than one thing.
8. What is one personality trait that you think is universally important for a successful career?
Self-awareness.
9. Who was a mentor to you throughout your career? (can be more than one!) What did they teach you? How did they impact your life?
I had lots of mentors, men and women. Each taught me something different, but they all helped me become who I am today. The thing about mentors is that (at least for me) you don't know in advance who they're going to be, it's a relationship that develops over time.
10. What do you think is the best advice you've ever received ? What advice would you give your younger self if you had the chance? What’s one piece of advice you can pass on to us?
See #6 above.
