By Gabrielle Sangervasi
Editor’s note: This story is part of a series of profiles of notable spring 2024 graduates.
If Mara Karageozian were given $40 million to solve one problem on Earth, she would bridge the gap between scientists, funding agencies and the public with STEM engagement and literacy programs.
“I think that there is often a disconnect between the work that scientists do in the lab and the general public who may not engage with STEM in their daily lives,” she laments.
While she may still be looking for someone to write that check, Karageozian may bridge this science communication gap on her own. This spring she will graduate with a doctoral degree in geological sciences from Arizona State University’s School of Earth and Space Exploration (SESE), and with a graduate certificate in responsible innovation in science, egineering and society (RISES) from the School for the Future of Innovation in Society.
By adding the RISES certificate to her academic program she was able to add a science-policy focus to her dissertation work. According to her faculty advisor and SESE Professor Thomas Sharp, this was a unique combination for a PhD program.
“Most people who end up out in science policy don’t start there,” he explains. “They usually start as scientists and then get there over time. (Karageozian’s) desire was to get there by a more direct route, right after her PhD.”
For the RISES chapter of her dissertation, Karageozian developed a program for NASA called “NASA Democratic Engagement of Citizens in Decadal Evaluation Surveys”. She created this program by combining forum-style civic engagement programs with NASA’s Decadal Surveys, which are used widely by the scientific community to guide the science and technology of the next decade.
“The program I’ve developed is targeted for NASA’s use but can be a model used by other science agencies, like the National Science Foundation or the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine to inform future science and mission decisions with perspectives of everyday citizens,” Karageozian says. “I hope this project and similar programs will help bridge the gap between everyday citizens, scientists and government agencies that drive our science and technology futures.”
While working towards her geological sciences PhD, Karageozian received the Vivian Forde Graduate Fellowship and the competitive ASU Graduate College Completion Fellowship.
“Mara is an excellent PhD student,” Sharp says warmly, “who not only worked in the meteoritics field with me, but also with Associate Professor Christy Till in exoplanet petrology and science policy.”
When asked, Till confirmed Karageozian’s excellent work on the exoplanet project and the valuable nature of her dissertation.
“Not only has Mara conducted outstanding cutting-edge research on the geochronologic dating of impacts, her dissertation also includes substantial and important work on how we can democratize scientific strategic planning at a national level,” Till says.
In addition to the time she devoted to her academics, Karageozian also spent time on many ASU department committees and service groups, including the SESE Graduate Council and SESE Inclusive Community Committee.
After graduation, she aspires to move into leadership roles as a civil servant and use her technical and scientific background in ways that serve U.S. citizens and the government.
Question: Why did you choose ASU?
Answer: When looking for graduate programs, I set my sights on departments with robust space researchers, like planetary geologists, meteoriticists, etc. ASU, specifically the School of Earth and Space Exploration, has many researchers focused on studying space! It seemed like a perfect fit and an inspiring department to join.
Q: Which professor taught you the most important lesson while at ASU?
A: I learned a great deal from my faculty advisor, Professor Tom Sharp, who taught me how to develop strong hypotheses about new and novel research questions. I also learned a great deal from Professor Christy Till about the importance of strong science communication skills.
Q: Any influences from past teachers, friends or family?
A: There are so many influences, and it would be hard to mention them all here! My undergraduate advisor, Professor Sarah Brownlee, inspired me to become a researcher and pursue academia. She set such a great example of an inspiring and supportive faculty member. In general, the role models of women in my life have shaped me to be confident and strong.
Q: How do you balance the demands of graduate studies with personal life and self-care?
A: Honestly, I think I’ve needed to consistently reevaluate what is healthiest for me throughout my graduate experience to have a good work-life balance. I try to look at balance as something like a tide that rises and lowers, where sometimes my balance is skewed more towards work (maybe I have an upcoming proposal or paper deadline) or more towards personal life (holidays, vacations, evenings after 5 p.m.). In general, I try to keep my work schedule to a 9-5 maximum, not working past 5 p.m. and not working during the weekends. However, I made room to give myself grace when I had to work outside of my regular hours, and I built a support system of friends and family that kept me accountable to take rest and breaks but also recognized my hard work when I needed to work extra hours.
Q: What advice would you give to incoming graduate students to help them make the most out of their ASU experience?
A: Set reasonable goals and expectations for yourself. Be kind to yourself and the people around you. Build a healthy support system of friends, family and faculty. Protect your time to relax and decompress. Be proud of your accomplishments and hard work.
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