During the months of April and May this year, it felt as if there was a momentous occasion occurring every day on the third floor above the Brown Bookstore where the Data Science Institute and its Centers reside. Nine PhD students from DSI’s Center for Computational Molecular Biology (CCMB) and Center for Technological Responsibility, Re-Imagination, and Redesign (CNTR) had finally reached one of the most significant days of their graduate degrees: the day they defended their PhD dissertations.

For the students in question (Alan DenAdel,  Alexandra Wong, Blake Hansen, Cole Williams, Ghulam Murtaza, Elizabeth Chevy, Hyeyeon Hwang, Kwkeu Kwegyir-Aggrey, and Vivek Ramanan),  the day of their defense was a nerve-wracking one. Not only did they address an audience of peers, professors, friends, and family to present what they had been working on for the past five years, but they also stood before a committee of faculty experts in their field to “defend” their work, explaining how they had contributed something new and significant to their respective fields. 

Fellow students and family members gathered each day in support, waiting outside of closed doors with bated breath while the student defended their thesis. Eventually, each student and advisor re-appeared, grinning proudly with weights lifted from their shoulders. Each of our nine students had done it!  The title of Doctor of Philosophy had been bestowed upon someone new. After years of trial, error, learning, and teaching, each of our nine students who defended their dissertations this spring earned their PhD. 

Students and friends and family from DSI, CCMB, and CNTR gathered nine times throughout April and May to toast to our new Doctors, sipping champagne and munching sweets. We are so proud to see the students who have been a part of our community for many years achieve this great accomplishment. 

Congratulations to all our graduating PhD students who defended their PhD dissertations this semester!