Jotautas Baronas

Jotautas Baronas has freshly arrived from Germany where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from Jacob’s University. Jo is now attending the University of Southern California where he will be working towards completion of a PhD under Dr. Doug Hammond. Although he knows that he will be focusing on geochemistry, he’s not sure what exactly within that realm he will study. After finishing school, he is interested in moving to the public sector, perhaps working as an environmental consultant.

Q: Have you always wanted to work in this field? Was there a defining moment in school or your childhood that guided you in this direction?

A: I had always liked science. In high school I realized that chemistry was my strongest of the sciences and that I really enjoyed it and I started to focus on chemistry classes.

Q: What classes did you choose to take in HS? What were your majors in undergrad/grad school? Was there a favorite, least favorite?

A: In high school I took advanced chemistry, math, and physics. Aside from the sciences I also liked literature.

Q: What bit of advice can you offer to our future scientists and explorers following on this blog?

A: Remember that practical experience, research, internships, etc, are just as important, if not more than the classes that you take. Get involved early on; aside from giving you experience that will help you with getting into colleges/grad school, that practical experience is what’s really going to show you if that field is one you’re interested in pursuing/staying involved in.