Graduated Year: Spring 2019
Major: M.S. in Biological Sciences
“Try, try, try again! Never ever give up! This is something I tell myself every day! Honestly, that’s what led me to get into a PhD program after 13 years of hard work!”
Jeyashree Alagarsamy is an alumna from Cal Poly Pomona who has made her alma mater very proud, embodying what it means to be a CPP Bronco! Jeyashree is not only a CPP graduate, but she is also a first-generation and international student, a mother, a woman in STEM, and a scholar researcher. She has become an example of strength and resilience that CPP students can look up to as they continue their educational journey and eventually become alumni themselves.
Originally from India, Jeyashree found her way to CPP after she received her bachelor’s in Industrial Microbiology in India. When she first arrived in the States, Jeyashree was volunteering in a research lab at University of North Dakota. During her time there, she learned that the educational system is completely different from the one she had experienced at home and was intrigued to learn more. She decided to apply for a master’s program in Biological Sciences before she fully committed to a 5-year PhD program in hopes of gaining more exposure to a variety of courses and research settings in the United States. This ultimately led her to apply to the master’s program in Biological Sciences at Cal Poly Pomona.
Once accepted, Jeyashree wasted no time in getting the ball rolling on participating in research and had already begun to contact a few faculty members of interest. She started her thesis work with Dr. Steve Alas from the CPP Biological Sciences Department. During her first year, she was attending a variety of extracurriculars, including journal clubs and grant writing, which are both essential skills for pursuing a PhD. In addition, her thesis work was an interdepartmental collaboration with the CPP College of Engineering that helped aid her in getting a different perspective of scientific research.
Her passion for the biological sciences developed early in her educational journey, specifically during her undergraduate degree. Jeyashree mentioned that the very first research experiment that she did in her microbiology lab was to leave fresh agar plates open for 15 minutes in multiple places followed by overnight incubation. The next day, she was intrigued to find the countless different fungal species that had grown on those plates under the microscope. This experience opened a new door for her life, and her fascination with this triggered her curiosity to ask questions. This curiosity not only lead Jeyashree on the path to pursue an education in the biological sciences, but it also helped her develop a hypothesis for her undergraduate thesis. Since then, she knew that this is what she wanted to do for the rest of her life!
Jeyashree added: “It’s been 13 years since my undergrad research and I’m still persistent in exploring different research areas.”
During her time at Cal Poly Pomona, Jeyashree was very active in the research community. She participated in the OUR GRAD program at CPP. The OUR GRAD program was created in hopes of being able to offer multiple opportunities for students to engage in research, get involved with research programs and labs, and present research on Cal Poly Pomona’s campus. Since she was a master’s student, Jeyashree had an opportunity to lead workshops for undergrad students in the program. Some of the workshops she led were: “How to Do A Professional Poster Presentation” and “Finding Research Opportunities and Faculty Mentors.” She also participated as a student panel member in the annual RSCA Conference to answer questions audience members had about her research. Participation in the programs helped her to improvise and improve her public speaking skills, plus she enjoyed sharing her research experience with the students. The OUR GRAD program helped her gain confidence and enabled her to participate in several conferences, where she earned several awards and recognition.
With the help and involvement of the research community, Jeyashree was able to focus on her most recent research project–her masters’ thesis! Her project focused on analyzing biofilm formation on novel human prosthetic metal alloys under the mentorship of Dr. Steve Alas and Dr. Vilupanur Ravi. She mentioned that one of the major reasons for prosthetic failure is due to bacterial infections; particularly, biofilm formations. Biofilms are highly antibiotic resistant compared to a planktonic bacterium. So, the only way to treat a patient is to remove the infected prosthetics. Her project goal was to find a metal alloy that will be least susceptible to biofilm formation. Here, she compared traditional metals with titanium boron alloys that have the potential to become better prosthetic biometals. With this, she also participated in a collaborative project with the engineering department, in which her part was to test these metals for biocompatibility.
Jeyashree mentioned there were some challenges throughout her time in research and academia as a whole. A challenge she faced was the continuous unsuccess she had with her project and the results. She had to try endlessly to get the foundation of her research correct in order to execute her project properly. She had help from Dr. Steve Alas, who always receptive of her ideas and there when needed. Dr. Ravi challenged Jeyashree with different questions and scenarios that helped her get a different perspective.
“One of the major struggles that every researcher will face is a “FAILURE,” said Jeyashree. “Things won’t work as you planned. Though carefully designing my experiments with the help of my mentor, there were times they won’t work, and you’ll get unexpected results. During that time, I got frustrated at the beginning, but doing several projects over the years taught me how to troubleshoot those experiments to successfully complete them.”
Both of her mentors were very supportive, including during her maternity leave. During her second year of her master’s, Jeyashree had her baby and became a mother. She mentioned it was difficult to juggle taking care of a newborn and doing research. Yet, with the support of her mentor – Dr. Steve Alas – and her spouse, she was able to conquer all the obstacles she encountered.
Moreover, Jeyashree said that being a woman and growing up in a small town from southern India, life has always been challenging for her. Her parents did their best to try to provide her and her sister a proper education, but due to the financial strain, her parents were not able to afford to send her to medical school despite her having a good score and being qualified. However, Jeyashree fell in love with scientific research after beginning her undergraduate degree in microbiology, which soon became her passion.
Jeyashree is also the first person to go to graduate school in her family, which resulted in experiences and barriers many first-generation students face. Furthermore, Jeyashree mentioned another barrier was that being an international student meant that she was not eligible to apply for many programs. However, that did not prevent her from looking for other opportunities to help her gain that research experience.
When asked what her favorite part about being a student at Cal Poly Pomona was, Jeyashree said: “Opportunities! Plenty of opportunities! From conferences, workshops, research conferences and more! All the amazing mentors that are very supportive and they tailor their mentorship towards the student’s goal. Constant encouragement that you receive from your peers and mentors; it's worth being a student at CPP!”
Moreover, Jeyashree worked as a Staff Research Associate in the gene therapy research lab at the UCLA School of Medicine. She explained that during her time at CPP and UCLA, she has been able to gain a strong foundation to focus on translational research that can help improve human life. Being able to acquire exposure to mentoring has been a contributing factor that is helping Jeyashree to achieve one of her long-term goals of becoming a faculty member and mentor for students. Her next step in achieving this goal is being accepted into a PhD program in the future, and she plans to explore cardiovascular research for her Ph.D thesis work.
Jeyashree Alagarsamy is a model alumna who, like many CPP students, has faced adversities in her lifetime and academia. From her transition as an international first-generation student to becoming a mother, to beginning and completing her master’s program, Jeyashree has shown us what it means to overcome and succeed no matter what life may have in store.
Advice to Students
“Seek opportunities! Don’t hesitate to contact any faculty members! They can be the someone who's taking classes for you or can be the one you meet at conferences/meetings. Don't let any discouragements disappoint you! They are integral parts of learning!"
