Tag: graduate

A Clemson native, May ’25 alum Griffin Thomas was a familiar face in the Life Sciences Building (LSB) during his undergrad, something that he looks back fondly on.

“Every day I looked forward to going to the LSB, knowing I would get the chance to talk to a past professor, a friend studying in the atrium, a member of the Genetics and Biochemistry staff or a member of the support staff.”

Griffin was a biochemistry major with minors in genetics and social sciences and was named an Eukaryotic Pathogens Innovations Center (EPIC) Seifert Scholar, served as the president of the Clemson Rotaract Club, a volunteer with the Cottingham Hospice House and a clinical research assistant in the School of Nursing.

Arguably, his most important work while at Clemson was his research in Dr. James Morris’ lab within EPIC where he studied the metabolism of T. brucei and Nagleria Fowleri in order to elucidate potential therapeutic targets.

After graduation, Griffin will be conducting research with the Department of Neurosurgery at Lenox Hill Hospital in NYC for a year prior to attending medical school.

“I hope this opportunity will prepare me to provide more informed and comprehensive care to my future patients and prepare me for a career in neurosurgery.”

Our G&B seniors graduated yesterday and among them was biochemistry student, now alum, Ruxi Xia. An international student from China, Ruxi enjoyed the strong biochemistry program Clemson had to offer, setting her up for future successes in research.

“I wanted a strong biochemistry program to set me up for success in cancer research as it has been my career choice since one of my family members passed from cancer.”

Ruxi was an intern at the Clemson Light Imaging Facility and participated in lab research at the Nanobiotechnology lab.

“I have worked on many independent immunofluorescence staining projects, learned to operate wide-field and confocal microscopes, and coordinated an imaging contest that receives entries from all over the world for that past three years.”

She has served as co-director for the Clemson Paw Pantry, president of the Clemson Chinese Students and Scholars Association and community service coordinator for the Clemson Rotaract Club, tutored at the Academic Success Center and acted as member of CUSG Campus Advancement committee.

“I have really enjoyed getting to help the community whether that is helping at the Clemson Community Care, local farms, and other shelters in the community.”

Her favorite moment during her undergrad was receiving her college ring at the Clemson Ring Ceremony with her best friends.

Ruxi plans to attend Columbia University for a Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering.

Natalie Shay, genetics student graduating this May, has been emersed in research, clubs and the community since she arrived, research being one of Natalie’s top priorities.

“During my freshman and sophomore year, I was in a CI with Dr. Marc Birtwistle where I helped study cancer diagnostics and pharmacology.”

Junior and senior year, Natalie developed an interest in neurobiology, resulting in an undergraduate researcher position in Dr. Julia George’s lab, where Natalie studied gene expression in the brains of zebra finch embryos, particularly DNA methylation changes.

“These experiences shaped me as a scientist, and I couldn’t be more thankful for them!”

Natalie was also the president of the Biochemistry and Genetics club, and her favorite course was Epigenetics; she loves figuring out how so many factors affect our gene expression beyond just our DNA sequence.

Natalie is grateful for the lifelong friends that she has made at Clemson over the last four years.

“It was awesome to find friends who love science as much as I do!”

After graduation, Natalie will be joining Dr. Jessica Larsen’s lab to pursue a master’s degree in bioengineering, her overall career goal to research and develop gene therapies.

“I’m glad I get to stay at Clemson a little bit longer!”

During genetics senior Disha Qanungo’s undergraduate degree, she has been involved in a “Human Remains Recovery” course, traveled oversees to learn about microbial pathogens, volunteered at the Shifa Clinic and participated in an MUSC internship, just to name a few.

Disha says that her favorite part of the Genetics and Biochemistry Department is the advisors, whom she notes visibly show their best interests for their students. In her very limited free time, she enjoys cooking and ice skating.

Disha dreams of creating free clinics for women and children in developing countries. Upon graduating in May, Disha will be spending the summer preparing to take the MCAT on August 2nd and subsequently applying to medical school. During Disha’s gap year, she will apply to work at We are Sharing Hope SC as a clinical specialist in Organ Donation.