Dr. Joann Lau graduated from Bellarmine in 1999, and received her doctorate from the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign in 2008.

Dr. Lau was kind enough to take time out to answer a few questions about her time in graduate school:

How is it that you ended up going to graduate school at the University of Illinois?

Joann Lau:   "After graduation, I spent a year really researching different graduate programs.  I was interested in a program that was multidisciplinary.  I wanted to be able to explore different topic areas and to tailor a research project that would encompass many disciplines.  I have always been interested in the area of pharmacology, but didn't want to do pure pharmacology research (I found that our during a summer research internship at the University of Kentucky).  I discovered an innovative research niche in the development of plant-based vaccines.  At the time, there were only a handful of universities actively doing research in that area, so I contacted the principle investigators and expressed interest in joining their research programs.  I ended up applying at four different universities, and interviewed at three of them.  I choose the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign because I was most impressed with their integrated approach to both research and the student-learning process.  At Illinois, I have had the opportunity to work on an exciting research project that involves both plants and animals.  I have also been able to incorporate genetic engineering, molecular biology, immunology, and biotechnology into my research."

How many years did it take you to get a Ph.D.? Did you go massively into debt paying tuition, etc?

Joann Lau:  "Most graduate schools offer either research assistantships or teaching assistantships to qualified graduate students.  There are also numerous fellowships that can be obtained (but on a competitive basis).  For example, departmental fellowships and university fellowships provide a stipend and a tuition waver.  Outside sources such as NIH, NSF, USDA, and the Department of Defense can provide stipends that cover tuition, activity fees, and health insurance coverage.  During my first year in graduate school, I received a departmental fellowship.  My second and third years were split between being a teaching assistant (25% appointment) for various courses and a research assistantship that my advisor covered.  During my fourth and fifth years I received a USDA-funded fellowship.  In other words, I have not gone into debt paying for graduate school." 

"At the University of Illinois, the average time for completion of a Ph.D. is around 4-5 years if you are entering with a Master's degree, and 5-7 years if you enter without a Master's degree.  The University of Illinois requires that all students complete a Master's before acceptance into the Ph.D program.  In my case, I was required to complete all the course work for a Master's along with the requirements for the Ph.D. program (the only thing I didn't have to do was write the Master's dissertation).  My aim was to finish within five and a half years.  However, I do know of students whose only support came in the form of teaching assistantships and it usually took them a longer to finish."       

I see.  Well, what four adjectives would you use to describe your time in graduate school so far?
Joann Lau:    “Fun because of all my lab mates!  Challenging because its grad school.  Frustrating because things don't always work the first time.  Exciting because it is a new experience.”

What are you planning on doing after you get your Ph.D.?
Joann Lau:   “I would like to be a biology teacher at a small college somewhere” 

Thanks for sharing your perspective on graduate school.  Good luck!
Joann Lau:  "Thanks"