Are you interested in a potential career path in the medical field? Do you want to learn about being a product development scientist or getting involved in research after college?
Read this blog post and watch the interview with Anh Phan!
Introducing Anh Phan
Meet Anh Phan! Located in San Diego, California, Anh Phan is a product development scientist, currently working in medical devices research and development. Let’s take a look at Anh’s work, and her tips for dealing with burnout and impostor syndrome.
What kind of scientist would you define yourself as right now?
“I would definitely define myself as a product development scientist! I’m currently working in medical devices research and development.
How did you first get interested in this specific field?
“I didn’t really know that I had a real interest in science until my junior year of high school, so pretty late, you know. During this time college decisions were already being made, and it was honestly a high school teacher. I took a human physiology and anatomy biology course in high school and my teacher for that class just really knew how to make it all interesting. He implemented a lot of disease learning throughout all the years and history, so it was just really fascinating and from there I just thought hey, you know, I’m pretty decent with all the other subjects, how about I look more into biology?”
What are you working on right now? What type of projects or experiments are you currently doing?
“So, my projects entails infectious diseases; diagnosing them and being able to push our project out successfully, so that entails a lot of lab work. You know, you have to be very well versed in the whole nature of operating procedures, those sorts of documents. You will become familiar [with it] yourself. I myself have written review approved protocols and documents, and it’s a mixture of testing and lab. Really fun stuff, so you know you’re standing in a lab, you get to mix all these crazy materials and assemble things by hand. Then the more admin side, you do have to do a lot of paperwork and signing off, and because this is going to go into our health care, you know, you want to make sure everything is correct, everything is honest, and you dot your i’s and cross your t’s for the FDA and other bodies to trust your work.”
What do you find is the most rewarding part of your job?
“Absolutely the people I get to work with. I was always sort of an outsider growing up, and, you know, I didn’t really have a huge group of friends ever, and it was such a refresher going to these environments where it’s very like-minded peers, you know they’re all very curious, they’re all very brilliant and innovative in their own ways. So, it’s sort of just a huge motivator, just to go to work and get to see these people from day to day.
What challenges did you face?
“One of the challenges that I definitely face is imposter syndrome. And you know, that’s really common, especially among women and young girls. Second challenge is definitely burnout. I wish someone had maybe told me that before I came to the industry, just, you know, just being aware that is a phenomenon that occurs often, especially in startup environments. Fun fact, I actually worked at four different startup environments and I’m pretty well versed with burnout and trying to mitigate that when it comes around.”
How did you overcome these challenges? How have you dealt with imposter syndrome and burnout?
“So, with imposter syndrome, [I] highly, highly recommend reaching out and having a good support group around you. And just checking in with others, you know, with imposter syndrome one of the things is that it’s so secretive, which is, you know, how it gets its “power” over you and when you’re reaching out to people, you will find out many other people are in the same boat as you. They’re all just figuring it out as they go. And they all happen to have this philosophy of fake it till you make it. So you’re definitely not alone. And to address the burnout that I would experience, you know setting myself time to just relax and not simply put on a face mask. It’s, you know, taking a few hours during a weekend to just go out and walk, or doing something that is going to help me relax mentally because with this job, it’s very mentally taxing on you so anything that you can mentally reset yourself- having a little brunch with friends or, you know, get together with family. Keep your mental state protected at all times.”
Who would you consider your biggest role model or a mentor that’s been a really big inspiration for you?
“My mother is definitely my biggest inspiration. She’s never been the person who told me, hey, you know, maybe you shouldn’t go into that. She’s always been like, if that’s what you want, let’s go for it, I’ll be here for you. So definitely her. And in terms of mentors, many people. I mean my mom, my sister. But mentors, I honestly just look at people around me. And if I ever feel like, hey, I want a different sort of inspiration, I love reading biographies and autobiographies of people I really admire. And it’s just, always look to yourself for inspiration too, it’s just, looking inwards sometimes is the best answer.”
What advice would you give to people who want to become scientists?
“I would definitely tell them to pursue it. And pursue it, you know, ferociously because there’s going to be challenges, whether it’s gender challenges or psychological challenges, just pursue it. You know, that’s what you want to do. Don’t let anything get in your way, it will be worth it in the end. You just have to enjoy the pursuit of it and just understand it’s gonna be hard, but it’s gonna be rewarding.”
Being a scientist takes a lot of hard work, and you may have to face unexpected obstacles or challenges that will try to hold you back. Imposter syndrome and burnout in STEM are some of the most common issues that people, and especially women, face. But like Anh said, if you know you want to be a scientist, pursue it “ferociously” and remember that you are never alone.
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