At the end of September, I had the pleasure of attending the Optica Women Scholars program inside of the Frontiers in Optics / Laser Science conference right here in Rochester, NY. I met women in optics from around the world, all doing incredible and vastly different research. As part of the Optica Women Scholars, I had conversations with several mentors, including past OPTICA presidents and industry leaders in optics. Their experiences gave new insight into the commercial applications and future careers. They presented talks on entrepreneurship in science, imposter syndrome, and different career paths through graduate school and into industry.
While the Women Scholars programming was immersive, I managed to catch some talks at the larger FiO/LS conference. Attending the Luminate Fin
als was especially inspiring, as I was exposed to ten of the most exciting young optics companies around the U.S. The technology they are developing is incredible, and I am excited to see where else the optical applications lead.
While the city is very familiar to me already, I enjoyed guiding my peers and sharing the culture of Rochester and surrounding areas. I am thankful to have met such leaders in my field, and so excited to see my fellow Optica Women Scholars at future conferences!
