Women in STEM: Ashleigh Jessica Chandra, Science

Ashleigh Jessica Chandra’s career is focused on neuroscience, an area of science that focuses on the brain and nervous system. Ashleigh earned her Bachelor’s degree in Neuroscience, her Graduate Diploma in Science, and Masters in Medicine from the University of Sydney (Australia). Her research has also been published in the Journal of Comparative Neurology. Below she shares a little about her career and the inspiration behind it.
 
What is your specific area of STEM?
Neuroscience.

How would you explain your STEM field to young girls?
I study how the eyes connect to the brain.
 
What traits might a child possess that may indicate an interest or aptitude for your STEM field?
Interest in how people see or why people are blind.
 
What did you know about your STEM field when you were a child? 
As a young child I always saw the world in full light, colour and acuity. When I was 16 I got my first pair of glasses for vision, and it made me wonder. My mother always pushed me to feed my curiosity, so I went into science because I was looking for answers.
 
Why did you choose your STEM field? Were you inspired by someone?
I wanted to be like Fred Hollows.

What are some really cool things that people in your profession work on? 
I use a microscope to look at cells under bright fluorescent light. When I turn the light on sometimes the cells light up for me, just like a firework!

What inspirational message would you give young girls to inspire them to pursue STEM? 
Never ever ever give up.
 

Thank you for contributing, Ashleigh!

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