Mary Blasius
Orange Coast College
Costa Mesa, CA USA
"We all have our weaknesses and we all have our strengths. [Being successful] is about the checks and balances."
Career Roadmap
Mary's work combines: Science, Environment & Nature, and Teaching / Mentoring
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Advice for getting started
Get involved. Join a club, volunteer/work in a lab, conduct independent research, etc. Discover the many different ways your major can be applied and the opportunities that it will give you.
Here's the path I took:
High School
Bachelor's Degree
Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
University of California-Irvine
Graduate Degree
Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
California State University-Long Beach
Life & Career Milestones
My path in life took a while to figure out
1.
Her parents both worked in the sciences—says she fell in love with science at a young age and grew up with a strong interest in pursuing it as a career.
2.
Attended the University of California, Irvine, where she received her bachelor’s degree in biology with a focus in ecology.
3.
Admits that she was only one of a few biology majors at that time that were not on a pre-med track, which initially made her feel isolated.
4.
Decided to participate in the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP)—says getting involved helped her realize the benefits of pursuing a career in scientific research.
5.
She worked in the atmospheric chemistry lab, where she conducted research on the environment and pollutants.
6.
Attended graduate school at California State University, Long Beach, where she continued to study biology and worked as a teacher’s assistant.
7.
Was inspired to apply her earlier research in some way to the study of animals, so she began measuring various environmental pollutants that can be found in marine animals like seals and sharks.
8.
After graduating with her master’s degree, she began teaching marine science and ecology at Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, CA.
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Peers:
All biology majors go to medical school.
How I responded:
When I was at UCI, a majority of all of the biology majors were on the pre-med track. My disinterest in that and my focus on animals and research made me stand out. I felt isolated, but my involvement in research made me realize there were so many pathways that my biology major could take me down that didn't involve medical school.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
In graduate school, you have to get thousands of dollars to fund your research. The first year, I didn't get funded and had to pay for it myself. I just had to keep applying for grants and scholarships until I finally got one.