An exceptional young lady named Carcia Carson has set an outstanding record at Vanderbilt University, United States after emerging as the first-ever black person to earn a PhD in Biomedical Engineering from the institution.
“I am honored to become the first to accomplish this feat. I look forward to diversifying my industry and continuing the discussion of representation in high-level research environments,” Carcia said.
Carcia earned her Bachelor of Science degree in physics from Jackson State University (JSU) after which she proceeded to Fisk University through their Fisk-Vanderbilt Master’s-to-Ph.D. Bridge Program
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Carcia obtained her master’s degree in Physics at Fisk University Program. She stated that she got exposed more to medical physics while she was at Fisk University.
She mentioned that now that she has made history at Vanderbilt University, she would focus her professional research on developing translational research in cancer vaccines and personalized immunotherapy.
Carcia mentioned that she was inspired to center on translational research after seeing her grandmother diagnosed with cancer and selected to undergo an immunotherapy clinical trial.
“Translational research is more likely to impact the treatment of cancer patients directly. That’s what I want to do. I want to have a direct hand in the treatment of cancer patients…I want to directly impact cancer patients with the hopes to improve the lives of people living with cancer,” she said.
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She said she did not expect to achieve the feat of being black in a white-dominated country but she made it thanks to her hard work and the support she received mostly from Jackson State University management who provided her with the ability to network productively with key stakeholders in her field.
“I felt small, and imposter syndrome started getting bigger. I felt like I didn’t deserve to be here. Being the first African American female to get this Ph.D., I didn’t see anybody that looked like me,” Carcia said.
”So I started to find mentors in other departments that were Black women. I joined organizations that were for Black graduate students, and that truly helped me,” she added.
Carcia expressed her gratitude to her faculty management for allowing her to showcase herself. “I was not the golden candidate that all faculty seek to advise, but the leader at Vanderbilt took a chance on me. Faculty needs to take a chance on all students,” she said.
”Just because they didn’t come from a prestigious undergraduate institution or didn’t have high-level research doesn’t mean they aren’t capable of being successful in your lab or program,” she added.
She stated that her goal is to continue advancing her medical research, eventually securing her Master of Business of Administration degree and one day becoming a director of Oncology.
Carcia said she hopes that other young graduates will also maximize their educational opportunities, encouraging them to utilize all available resources, ask questions, and allow their professional connections to inform their pathway.
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