working at the intersection of science, healthcare & entrepreneurship
ALUMNI
Innovation Scholars alumni career trajectories have been broad and varied since completing the program and graduating from college or, in the case of graduate team leaders, graduate school.
To provide a sense of the pathways pursued and the connections to program outcomes, hear from our alumni:
“I took five years off between undergrad and medical school to do a Fulbright teaching assistantship and conduct research at the University of Minnesota and Be the Match.”
“I now work for a non-profit in central Minnesota assisting homeless youth with different health concerns and housing opportunities. I am also currently in the process of obtaining my master’s degree in Higher Education Administration.”
“I dove right into starting my own business – amarketing agency – and sold it nine years later!”
“I became a Ph.D. student and participated in international health and health systems research with placements in Afghanistan and Switzerland. I then transitioned to professional consulting with UNICEF and WHO for about two years before accepting a faculty research position.”
“I managed an integration project for HealthEast and was offered a position to improve & restructure the Research Department at the University of Minnesota. Now I am working in IT with Portfolio Management and IT Processes!”
“I am a first year Ph.D. student in Computational and Mathematical Engineering at Stanford.”
“After graduation, I worked as a marketing analyst at an industrial company and leveraged many of the market analysis skills I built during MISP. After four years, I went back to school at Berkeley for my MBA and transitioned into software product management. I went on to work as a Product Manager at Airbnb in San Francisco.”
“I am a senior consultant in healthcare technology strategy, implementation and operations across the U.S.”
“I work as a sourcing analyst at a manufacturing company. We develop many new products from our lab’s inventions, including med devices, so this gave me good exposure to the end of the new product development process.”
“I became an Analyst, Associate and Vice President at Cherry Tree & Associates Investment Banking, pursued my MBA at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, and now am the Vice President of a private equity firm.”
“I am a registered nurse at the Mayo Clinic Hospital in Rochester, MN!”
“I went on to pursue a Ph.D. at the University of Cambridge through the NIH / Oxford / Cambridge Scholars program. I spent half of my time at NIH as part of this program. I transitioned into a postdoc position at Genetech in San Francisco, working in the area of Cancer immunology.”
“I realized through Innovation Scholars that I wanted to do something more interdisciplinary than wet lab research. I ended up going to law school and working at the intersection of science and policy.”
– TEAM MEMBER, CARLETON COLLEGE
“Innovation Scholars was a defining part of my undergraduate experience. My participation in this program helped mold me into a better researcher, public speaker and professional writer. Additionally, I learned valuable lessons regarding time management and interdisciplinary group work.”
– TEAM MEMBER, GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS COLLEGE
“Innovation Scholars absolutely influenced my career. I ended up following a career in science and innovation through obtaining a Ph.D. in Immunology and pursuing work in biotech (cell therapy). In addition to shaping an interest in developing and licensing new technologies, the IS experience also opened my eyes to entrepreneurship, leadership activities and new opportunities in biotechnology and biomedical devices.”
– TEAM MEMBER, ST. OLAF COLLEGE
“I keep in touch with Innovation Scholars alums and they, without fail, cite Innovation Scholars as a transformative experience that they hold as valuable into their professional lives.”
– CAMPUS MENTOR, COLLEGE OF SAINT BENEDICT AND SAINT JOHN’S UNIVERSITY
