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Mike Biggerstaff Highlight
It's your life, so take the guidance and advice from other people, filter it heavily, and then apply it in a way that you can succeed.
About Mike
- At the age of five, he told his aunt and uncle, "I want to be a meteorologist. I want to study the weather."
- Was an imaginative child; says he used to wish he could have a thunderstorm as a toy that he could just pull out of his pocket and play with.
- Knew that he wanted to be a professor and do research, and in order to do that, he needed a Ph.D.
- His parents hadn't had good college experiences-they said it was a waste of time-but he knew he had to ignore that and follow his own path.
- Went to the University of Texas at Austin, then completed his Ph.D. in atmospheric sciences at the University of Washington.
- His work focuses on cloud microphysics, electrification, and storm dynamics, which sometimes entails driving into storms and hurricanes to gather data.
- Says he still has doubts as to whether he's smart enough or if he knows enough to do the research he wants to do.
- But he realizes time and time again that there's always more to learn-you just need to push through self-doubt and believe in your own intelligence.
