STEM
STEM Blog
Graduate School Q&A with Catherine Ryczek '21
By Catherine Ryczek '21
January 17, 2023
Tags STEM
Q: Can you describe your research experience at Hamilton as a physics student? What did you learn from conducting research with Hamilton professors? Do you think it prepared you for graduate school afterwards?
A: I worked with Professor Kristen Burson all four years at Hamilton. I started doing research with her the summer after my freshman year and during that time I worked on several projects including organic solar cells. After my sophomore year, I traveled to Berlin, Germany, with Professor Burson where I conducted research at the Fritz Haber Institute to determine the atomic structure of SiO2 on an oxygen covered Ru substrate using IV LEED. I continued this analysis back at Hamilton and ultimately finished it for my senior thesis. During this time I learned how to be an independent researcher and split large research goals into daily tasks. I also developed my skills in reading and writing scientific papers. All of this was very helpful for graduate school and I found myself well prepared to conduct research at a more advanced level.
Q: As you begin your second year at CalTech, what are your first impressions of graduate school?Are there aspects of being a graduate student you didn’t expect? How do you maintain a healthy work-life balance?
A: Graduate school is very different from undergrad in almost all regards, especially coming from a place like Hamilton. I was not used to large lecture-style classes where grades are considered unimportant and it is common for many students to fail the exams. This definitely required a large mentality shift and a reframing of my education as just part of my job, not my identity. I think the most important way to maintain that healthy work-life balance is to set hard limits for yourself. It is so easy for tasks to grow to fill all available time, especially with research that literally will never end. However, I try to always carve out my weekends to decompress and enjoy life here in Southern California.
Q: Where do you see the future of solar energy research going? With the growing threat of climate change, how do you manage to keep an optimistic attitude in your work?
A: In order to hit the 2050 climate goals, we will likely need to install about 50 TW (terawatts) of solar power in the next 30 years. This is an especially daunting task when you realize that we only very recently achieved 1 TW of global solar capacity. In order to meet this goal we need to significantly ramp up solar production and installation, while simultaneously working to develop technologies that will reduce the amount of rare materials needed to generate solar energy. It is definitely overwhelming and somewhat disheartening to think about, but I always try to remind myself that ignoring the facts will not change them. If nothing else, I can try to make a difference with my life by working to decrease our carbon emissions. While I may fail, nothing I can do will be worse than doing nothing at all.
Q: Physics is known as a very male-dominated field. Do you feel this is true from your own experience? If so, how do you deal with this? Do you have any advice for women wanting to pursue a job in physics after Hamilton?
A: Physics and engineering are definitely male-dominated fields. I was extremely fortunate to have an approximately equal gender split in my physics cohort at Hamilton, so having only about 20% female students in my graduate classes has definitely been an adjustment. My research advisor here at Caltech, Professor Harry Atwater, is a really amazing researcher who values the different perspectives gained by having a diverse lab group. Because of this, almost half of the lab students are women and I never feel out of place. I would definitely recommend any women interested in pursuing a job in physics after Hamilton to pay special attention to the culture of the group they will be working in. Even if the broader organization leans one way or another, what I have found most important is to make sure that the people you will be working with on a day-to-day basis are supportive and understanding.
Q: What advice would you give to current Hamilton students thinking about pursuing graduate school, specifically physics majors? What do you wish you knew when you were a Hamilton student?
A: Graduate school can be very rewarding, but also extremely challenging. I think that it is very important to take time, either during the summer or a gap year, to really recover from the stress of undergrad before diving into graduate level courses if you want to avoid burnout. As far as graduate admissions go, I would say that one of the most helpful pieces is your research experience. Even if you do not know what you want to do long term, getting into a lab around your freshman or sophomore year will give you a great base to really develop your research skills (and you can always transition later). Classes are important in that you will need to meet certain criteria with respect to grades and topics, but really the connections you make with your professors and research advisors are key. Most importantly, never forget that while graduate school may be your goal, it is also important to enjoy your time now. If you always keep waiting to live until you achieve that next milestone, you will never really enjoy your life.
