Although Whitney had done remarkably well,
she still wasn't quite sure about her career
path...
"For a long time I had been vacillating between
pursuing a career in dentistry or biomedical
research. A trip that summer to attend a pre-dental
workshop dispelled all indecisive thoughts," she
recounts. "I recall trying my best to remain focused
at the pre-dental workshop but most of the time I
found myself scribbling plans for the next
experiment."
Her second summer research experience at the
University of Texas, Southwestern Medical
Center, in Dallas cemented her passion for
research...
“While conducting my research, I encountered
several problems, which I was given the latitude to
troubleshoot on my own. I worked arduously for long
hours on my project — being one of the first to
arrive and among the last to leave,” she remembers.
“I had finally found what I wanted to do."
Fast forward to 2012, Whitney graduated Suma
Cum Laude and Valedictorian from Grambling
University with a bachelor’s degree in Biology.
And, although she had prepared brilliantly for
the next step in becoming a research scientist,
a bout of self-doubt dogged her…
"The uncertainty of my future plagued me once
again," she discloses. "Though I had been fortunate
to secure several research opportunities, and had a
decent GPA, and strong recommendations, I still
felt unprepared for graduate school."
And the prospect of becoming a research
scientist seemed out of reach for Whitney...
"As a young child growing up on a small island, the
prospect of pursuing a doctoral degree, though a
revered aspiration, seemed something remote and
destined for only a few elite people," she
hypothesized. "The idea of becoming a research