For neuroscientist and St. Joseph’s University, New York alumna Noële Certain ‘12, Ph.D., her road to success is one that can neither be described as straight or clearly defined. It was a route comprised of winding and diverging pathways.
Today, she conducts research on neurodevelopmental disorders at the Yale School of Medicine. But Dr. Certain did not know this would be her calling.
Growing up on Long Island’s east end, Dr. Certain sought to carve out a future she would view as fulfilling, self-gratifying and meaningful. She wanted to leave her mark on the world. With a love of science, dreams of attending veterinarian school and a desire to stay close to home, she applied to many New York colleges and universities, including SJNY’s Long Island campus.
A large, sprawling campus with Division I athletics didn’t impress Dr. Certain. Instead, it was St. Joe’s biology program, the intimate lakeside campus and inclusive community that attracted her to the University (then St. Joseph’s College). And receiving a full-ride scholarship didn’t hurt either.
“The biology department was an incredibly strong program to get you where you needed to go,” Dr. Certain recounted. “At the time we had a lot of students wanting to go medical school and vet school and I was like ‘this is perfect’.”
With her eyes set on vet school, Dr. Certain dedicated all her time and focus to her studies, forging relationships with professors in the biology department inside the classroom and as a work-study student. When she wasn’t on campus, Dr. Certain volunteered at a horse farm and worked nights at an animal hospital.
With the support her SJNY professors, Dr. Certain ’12 was admitted into the master’s program at Stony Brook, where she eventually received her Ph.D.
As graduation neared, her hard work, determination and passion were bound to pay off with acceptance into a veterinarian program. Only she was met with denial.
“I had applied to three vet schools, and by graduation, I didn’t get into any of them,” Dr. Certain said.
At this point in the story, many individuals would take this rejection as a sign to change course. But Dr. Certain held steadfast her in desire to turn a “no” into a “yes.”
She credits SJNY with supporting her at this time in her life where she was unsure of what would come next. Thanks to the relationships she forged as an undergrad student, Dr. Certain secured a position helping to run the SJNY biology lab.
“St. Joe’s became a platform for me after graduation,” she said. “They were there to support me while I figured out what I needed to do before reapplying to vet school.”
She was later accepted to veterinarian school, but this time, Dr. Certain turned them down.
“After I applied and did my interviews, I realized I didn’t want to go to vet school,” Dr. Certain said. “I didn’t necessarily think it was the career I wanted. I had to take a step back.”
Faced with a career pivot, SJNY helped to guide her journey. In fact, SJNY professor Francis Antonawich, Ph.D. suggested graduate school—something Dr. Certain hadn’t considered. She also credits Dr. Antonawich with giving her an inkling that would grow into a love of neuroscience.
Additional SJNY faculty that Dr. Certain said helped her along her path were Academic Advisor Dr. Moira Royston, Laboratory Manager Patricia Lennon and Associate Professor Dr. Konstantine Rountos.
Dr. Certain is currently is a postdoctoral associate at the Yale School of Medicine.
Her time in the SJNY lab prepping experiments led Dr. Certain to ultimately pursue a career in science and a Ph.D. And yet again, rejection reared its head.
Dr. Certain was faced with denial letters from several Ph.D. programs. However, through that wave of rejection came a silver lining. Thanks to glowing recommendation letters from her professors, she was admitted into the Biochemistry and Cell Biology Master’s program at Stony Brook University.
Dr. Certain continued her graduate studies while working at SJNY to help fund her education. Eventually, her lab work studying specific proteins in the brain that affect cognitive function helped Dr. Certain overcome the odds again. In 2017, she was admitted into Stony Brook University’s Ph.D. program for Molecular and Cellular Pharmacology.
Since then, Dr. Certain has gone on to receive major awards and recognition from the scientific community. These include the D-SPAN award, which funds up to six years of research; the Dr. W. Burghardt Turner Fellowship; and the Society for Neuroscience: Neuroscience Scholars Program.
Outside the lab, Dr. Certain is a teacher and mentor to students looking to pursue their scientific endeavors.
Currently, Dr. Certain works as a postdoctoral associate at the Yale School of Medicine. She is also an active mentor for Women in Science at Yale.
“I don’t think a lot of people think about being a scientist as a career, especially when the people in that field don’t always look at like you,” Dr. Certain said. “Sometimes it helps to see yourself in somebody else.”
