Madelyn Whitaker

What are you are studying/what you are interested in studying and/or researching while at Purdue? If you have done internships or other applicable experiences, feel free to include them here.

I am studying cellular and biomolecular engineering because I am really interested in developing sustainable biological solutions to the problems that we are seeing in our environment and agricultural practices. While a byproduct of climate change on Earth, the manifesting impacts and changes to the living world around us also allow for more information to be gained about growing and sustaining life in increasingly harsh environments. My primary research areas are involved in interplanetary agriculture and recycling organic waste, and I hope to continue that in future independent research and graduate studies. Through researching and contributing knowledge to these areas, I have truly furthered my love for closed ecosystem agriculture and developing methods to support life in environments beyond what we are accustomed to. I most recently completed an internship at Anheuser-Busch developing hazard mitigation policies and energy management SOPs, and am hoping to continue to gain experience in either environmental policy, plant physiology, or space biology in the future.

 What made you want to join the Leading Women Toward Space Careers program?

I wanted to join Leading Women Toward Space Careers because mentorship in any capacity is such an invaluable experience. Even more so, I was so excited to connect with fellow women and industry professionals who are passionate about propelling others and themselves towards success, particularly in the space industry. This group is in a unique position in which we are able to foster dialogue between professionals now and women who will be working in industry in the future. And overall, I hope to gain skills that will further my ability to serve as a mentor in the future for women who are looking to get involved in a similar educational and career path and continue the promotion of women in space careers.

What area would you like to work in after graduation? (What career path, interests, opportunities, etc., would you like to accomplish? What field are you interested in?)

After graduation, I would like to work in closed ecosystem agriculture or a bioinformatics-related field. I am extremely interested in plants and how they change under various stresses, and just supporting life on other planets in general, so I would love to do research and promote the overall depth of knowledge in the field of astrobotany and space biology. I plan on pursuing a Ph. D. in either biological engineering or space biology and botany and continue my work in sustainable agriculture and life support systems. In the future, I would love to return to academia or work as a research scientist or engineer for a government agency or abroad.