8 answers
Aurora
Student
Algeria
4
Questions
Updated
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How did you know that this is the right career for you?
Hello! I am currently in my senior year in high school .I am kind of confused about which major I should choose since I am not interested in anything in particular . Still , I want to choose something that includes medicine and tech . Can some of you tell me about their experience in these two fields ? (I want some inspiration from you)
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8 answers
Chiara Kunnie, CFA, MBA
New Business Manager, Social Impact Sales
2
Answers
London, England, United Kingdom
Updated
Chiara’s Answer
Hi! I didn't know how many career options there could be where healthcare/medicine and technology overlapped. I've found myself in the communication tech partnerships space over the past decade, and spent the majority of that time working in the healthcare space. This involves working with organisations who are leveraging communication messaging channels to help communities on information related to their health. The height of this was during Covid, where digital channels accelerated support. I knew this was right for me because it married up my passion for helping people with staying on the frontier of technology. All that to say is that there may options out there in this space. I would encourage going for some coffee chats with people from different careers in the healthtech/medtech space to learn as much as you can about what's out there, and what might be interesting for you. Bonus if you can job shadow to learn about the day to day!
Go for coffee chats with people from different careers in the healthtech/medtech space to learn as much as you can about what's out there, and what might be interesting for you
Job shadow to learn about the day to day across different career paths
Chiara recommends the following next steps:
Thank you very much , I really appreciate the advice
Aurora
Chirag Gajjar
Product Manager
1
Answer
New York, New York
Updated
Chirag’s Answer
Hi Aurora! Like many, I found my career path by exploring and learning along the way. I started in tech, working at a software company, and then moved to a healthcare organization focused on digitizing patient records. This is where tech and healthcare came together for me.
Since you're interested in both medicine and tech, there are lots of exciting options where they mix. You could look into biomedical engineering to design medical devices, health informatics and AI to use data for better care, biotechnology for AI-driven drug discovery, or digital health with apps and telemedicine. My advice is to start with a broad field like biology, computer science, or biomedical engineering. Let your classes, projects, and internships show you what you enjoy most. You're already on the right track by being curious and open-minded.
Since you're interested in both medicine and tech, there are lots of exciting options where they mix. You could look into biomedical engineering to design medical devices, health informatics and AI to use data for better care, biotechnology for AI-driven drug discovery, or digital health with apps and telemedicine. My advice is to start with a broad field like biology, computer science, or biomedical engineering. Let your classes, projects, and internships show you what you enjoy most. You're already on the right track by being curious and open-minded.
Thank you , thank you very much , I really appreciate your help .
Aurora
Esther Venmans
Senior Quality director
7
Answers
Leuven, Flanders, Belgium
Updated
Esther’s Answer
By doing, exploring and changing ...
If I could talk to my younger self about jobs and careers, I’d say: pick something within your general interest, start and explore.
Don’t expect or aim for the perfect job.
There are learning opportunities everywhere, and as a student, you often don’t realize how many different types of jobs exist.
When I was younger, I wanted to be a scientist. I studied and earned three master’s degrees in medical engineering, bioinformatics and computer sciences. I believed research was my thing because I loved to learn. But during my PhD, I realized research wasn’t for me. Waiting years to (hopefully) see results didn’t suit my hands-on nature. I found myself organizing lab purchases, documenting procedures, and helping others through coaching and teaching. That’s when I realized: this is what I enjoy more than research.
So I switched to product engineering, but it was still too theoretical. Fortunately, I had visibility into other departments, so I moved into operations as a validation engineer: analyzing processes, improving them, and organizing workflows. That’s when everything clicked. I was adding real value, enjoying the work, and time flew by.
But you grow over time, your interests and knowledge shift, your company evolves, your colleagues change, and so will your ideal job. That’s why it’s important to keep looking, keep learning, and stay open to new possibilities. What feels right today might not be the same tomorrow. So I changed again and again and again, ... each time to learn something new, to enjoy my work and make an impact, ... until I see something else that pulls my interest.
It’s not just students, most of us never have it fully figured out. We all take detours, often more than once, throughout our careers
and that’s perfectly okay.
One of the greatest gifts of our time is the freedom to pivot—the choices we make today, like your studies, don’t define our entire journey.
If I could talk to my younger self about jobs and careers, I’d say: pick something within your general interest, start and explore.
Don’t expect or aim for the perfect job.
There are learning opportunities everywhere, and as a student, you often don’t realize how many different types of jobs exist.
When I was younger, I wanted to be a scientist. I studied and earned three master’s degrees in medical engineering, bioinformatics and computer sciences. I believed research was my thing because I loved to learn. But during my PhD, I realized research wasn’t for me. Waiting years to (hopefully) see results didn’t suit my hands-on nature. I found myself organizing lab purchases, documenting procedures, and helping others through coaching and teaching. That’s when I realized: this is what I enjoy more than research.
So I switched to product engineering, but it was still too theoretical. Fortunately, I had visibility into other departments, so I moved into operations as a validation engineer: analyzing processes, improving them, and organizing workflows. That’s when everything clicked. I was adding real value, enjoying the work, and time flew by.
But you grow over time, your interests and knowledge shift, your company evolves, your colleagues change, and so will your ideal job. That’s why it’s important to keep looking, keep learning, and stay open to new possibilities. What feels right today might not be the same tomorrow. So I changed again and again and again, ... each time to learn something new, to enjoy my work and make an impact, ... until I see something else that pulls my interest.
It’s not just students, most of us never have it fully figured out. We all take detours, often more than once, throughout our careers
and that’s perfectly okay.
One of the greatest gifts of our time is the freedom to pivot—the choices we make today, like your studies, don’t define our entire journey.
Paul Goetzinger MPA
Academic and Career Advisor | Freelance Writer | TRIO Program Director
1060
Answers
Tacoma, Washington
Updated
Paul’s Answer
There are several things that you can do in order to determine what you want to major in when you attend college.
Remember, you will have two years (until you declare a major at the beginning of your junior year in college), to make a final determination, of what you want to do. So, definitely take advantage of this time and complete your General University Requirements (during your first two years), so you can eventually progress into a major.
You might start out by exploring your personal interests and strengths through activities like career assessments and the courses that you will be taking in your first two years. There will be a variety of things, that you will be taking. This includes Humanities, Social Sciences, Natural Sciences, Math, and other courses. So definitely use these classes to determine where your strongest interests are.
Next, research different majors, their course content, and potential career paths by conducting informational interviews with professors and people at the college career center, and investigating job market trends.
Finally, consider your long-term goals and values, and remember that it is okay to start as an undecided student and change your major as you learn more about yourself and different fields.
I have a basic formula, when it comes to determining a major or a future occupation related to that major. Choose something that you love to do, not just a passion, but really love. It must be something that you love so much, that even if they did not pay you to do it, you would still do it anyway. American historian, David McCullough, said it even more clearly. He stated that he loved writing about history so much, that he would have paid someone, so that he could do it every day. His love of his major and occupation was this great.
Remember, you will have two years (until you declare a major at the beginning of your junior year in college), to make a final determination, of what you want to do. So, definitely take advantage of this time and complete your General University Requirements (during your first two years), so you can eventually progress into a major.
You might start out by exploring your personal interests and strengths through activities like career assessments and the courses that you will be taking in your first two years. There will be a variety of things, that you will be taking. This includes Humanities, Social Sciences, Natural Sciences, Math, and other courses. So definitely use these classes to determine where your strongest interests are.
Next, research different majors, their course content, and potential career paths by conducting informational interviews with professors and people at the college career center, and investigating job market trends.
Finally, consider your long-term goals and values, and remember that it is okay to start as an undecided student and change your major as you learn more about yourself and different fields.
I have a basic formula, when it comes to determining a major or a future occupation related to that major. Choose something that you love to do, not just a passion, but really love. It must be something that you love so much, that even if they did not pay you to do it, you would still do it anyway. American historian, David McCullough, said it even more clearly. He stated that he loved writing about history so much, that he would have paid someone, so that he could do it every day. His love of his major and occupation was this great.
Eva Hogan
5
Answers
Arlington, Virginia
Updated
Eva’s Answer
I'm going to go a little meta here - it's okay if you don't know what you want to do! Just try something. And, it's also okay if you're not passionate about your career - it's okay if it's just for the paycheck! Sometimes, being an entry level admin is just that and no one is passionate about filing and shredding papers... BUT keep looking for opportunities to grow and be challenged (and don't limit this to at work). You never know what might happen - maybe you'll end up starting a business. One example that comes to mind is this girl on socials that loved sailing and living on a boat, but she couldn't keep up with the maintenance on the boat. So she vibe coded an app to do it, and now that app is getting traction and people are using it. Figure out what your values are (this sounds dumb, I know!) - mine are that I value freedom, creativity, family/friends, and aligning with a mission. If the job that I'm doing doesn't align with those things, I know it's time for me to move on. It gives me a lot more flexibility for picking something rather than "I have to be a project manager!" and it gives me an outline for how to evaluate if something is a good fit for me or not. For example - I value family and friends, so working on evenings and weekends would not be optimal for me. These things might evolve over the years too as you grow (we're all growing every day) and that's awesome!
Thank you for giving me advice.
Aurora
Rikki Singh
Product and engineering leader
4
Answers
San Francisco, California
Updated
Rikki’s Answer
Great question Aurora! When exploring careers, I strongly suggest finding people who have that job/ career and getting a phone call or coffee with them. You can ask them questions about what they love about their job, what surprised them etc. and that can help you form your own opinion.
I also suggest jotting down what you enjoy doing/ motivates you + what you're naturally good at. Because building a career at the intersection of those two can be very fulfilling.
I work in technology and it was because I loved physics and always found myself happiest when I was learning so I picked a field where change is constant and I get to apply physics (though intermittently :D )
Also, know that a career isn't a straight line. It's winding. You will have several chapters so as long as you know what you are solving for, your job/ career itself may evolve over time in service of that goal.
I also suggest jotting down what you enjoy doing/ motivates you + what you're naturally good at. Because building a career at the intersection of those two can be very fulfilling.
I work in technology and it was because I loved physics and always found myself happiest when I was learning so I picked a field where change is constant and I get to apply physics (though intermittently :D )
Also, know that a career isn't a straight line. It's winding. You will have several chapters so as long as you know what you are solving for, your job/ career itself may evolve over time in service of that goal.
I appreciate your support, Rikki
Aurora
Kathleen Rezek
Laboratory and compliance
109
Answers
Stanwood, Michigan
Updated
Kathleen’s Answer
Hello! First of all, what are your general interests? Helping people? Solving problems or puzzles? Fixing things? Technology? Do you prefer to be in the spotlight or behind the scenes? There are many options in the Healthcare field. Personally, I loved solving puzzles, figuring out how things work together, and working with my hands. I loved biology and chemistry and as an introvert, I found the field of clinical laboratory science a perfect fit. Even within that discipline there are a lot of options. So, think about what you really love doing and go from there!
I really love helping people especially ones who are desperate (like wanting a cure...) , I also like solving complex problems , solving difficult ones at school brings me joy and excitement but I am not into fixing things because I am so bad with using my hands . Still , I like technology when it comes to make it easy for others to do some activities or some tasks at their own job . I actually don't mind being in the spotlight or behind scenes , but I am much more interested into leaving an impact in any field I choose . And thank you again for your advice .
Aurora
I believe you will find a good fit and definitely make a positive impact.
Kathleen Rezek
Karthick Natarajan
Postdoctoral Researcher at NYU Langone Health
32
Answers
New York, New York
Updated
Karthick’s Answer
Hello! Thanks for asking this. Discovering your path is often a journey of curiosity, not just a single "aha!" moment.
For me, it wasn't about having a big plan to become a neuroscientist. It began in college with a fascination for the human brain, the most complex machine we know. I didn't have a clear career goal, but I wanted to help solve this puzzle.
You're in a great spot because you're interested in the mix of medicine and technology, which I believe is the future. My career blends both fields.
Think of it like this:
Medicine: We aim to understand and find cures for diseases like Alzheimer's and ALS. It's a meaningful medical mission.
Technology: We use amazing technology, not just stethoscopes. In my lab, we create tiny "brains in a dish," use advanced tools to see inside them, and analyze large datasets to find patterns. It's a hands-on, tech-driven process.
I felt I found the right career when I realized I could use my love for technology to solve biological puzzles that might help people. I didn't have to choose between my interests.
My advice is not to stress about finding a single passion now. Choose a major that keeps your options open, like Biomedical Engineering, Computational Biology, or Biotechnology. Get involved in a research lab on campus as soon as you can, even if it's just washing glassware or preparing solutions. Being in that environment will inspire you.
You're asking the right questions. Keep following your curiosity, and it will lead you to a career you love.
For me, it wasn't about having a big plan to become a neuroscientist. It began in college with a fascination for the human brain, the most complex machine we know. I didn't have a clear career goal, but I wanted to help solve this puzzle.
You're in a great spot because you're interested in the mix of medicine and technology, which I believe is the future. My career blends both fields.
Think of it like this:
Medicine: We aim to understand and find cures for diseases like Alzheimer's and ALS. It's a meaningful medical mission.
Technology: We use amazing technology, not just stethoscopes. In my lab, we create tiny "brains in a dish," use advanced tools to see inside them, and analyze large datasets to find patterns. It's a hands-on, tech-driven process.
I felt I found the right career when I realized I could use my love for technology to solve biological puzzles that might help people. I didn't have to choose between my interests.
My advice is not to stress about finding a single passion now. Choose a major that keeps your options open, like Biomedical Engineering, Computational Biology, or Biotechnology. Get involved in a research lab on campus as soon as you can, even if it's just washing glassware or preparing solutions. Being in that environment will inspire you.
You're asking the right questions. Keep following your curiosity, and it will lead you to a career you love.
This was super helpful, thank you!
Aurora