Joel Schneider
Ph.D. ‘21
Chemical Engineering
Academic advisor: Professor Stacey Bent
What have you been up to since Stanford?
It’s certainly been a whirlwind. After a couple of moves and heading across the country, I’m currently based in Minneapolis, MN. I’m enjoying leaning into the teaching interests that Stanford ChemE helped me cultivate; I’ve since held several teaching and education research roles, including with the National Science Foundation and in Norway. I recently finished my postdoc, where I studied how science education impacts student biases and how classrooms can deconstruct or reinforce harmful beliefs about race. Currently I am employed as a research scientist at the University of Minnesota, working in the intersection of sex/gender identity and power structures in STEM education. I’m on the job market now and look forward to continuing my work in education!
Since graduating, I’ve had the joy of growing new community and going on so many adventures. Between canoe trips to the MN Boundary Waters, international travel, finding my favorite local distilleries, many arts and Pride festivals, and cozying up for the cold seasons, there’s no shortage of life here up North. It’s been quite a journey of personal growth, and I’m excited for what’s next.
What’s your fondest memory about your time at Stanford?
It’s definitely the peer support where we could ground one another and have fun during grad school. Stanford Wine Society always holds a special place in my heart, and I have all the ChemE friends from there to thank for only further enabling my special interests in tasty things. My lab group and cohort, the ChemE Action Committee, and what has now become the Stanford Graduate Workers Union are where I met my dearest friends at Stanford. I have so many good memories together with the community from grad school, and I’m still grateful for all the shenanigans and camaraderie we’ve shared!
Can you share any advice with our current students or postdocs?
Try to be expansive, both in how you see your work and in the relationships that are part of that.
Remember that your current work isn’t a silo, so seek ways to build bridges. I certainly found it easy to get laser-focused on one topic, but you’re learning a lot of different skills while at Stanford. Many of those skills are translatable to a lot of contexts and problems! Your whole career isn’t going to be exactly what you’ve done the past few years, and many of my peers from Stanford are now doing things they wouldn’t have predicted then. Although some chapters of my path so far might seem unrelated—like semiconductor engineering and power narratives in education—I’m still using plenty of what I learned at Stanford. Everything you do has the possibility of translating and applying to something new, and that’s the fun of creativity and problem solving!
Relationships can also be a big part of that expansiveness. None of us are an island or a brain on a stick, even though deadlines or our academic work can sometimes make it feel that way. It’s important that we can show up as our whole selves, so lean into reciprocity and don’t try to do everything on your own. Take care of your whole person, and seek relationships and community where you can support one another to do the same. Helping one another is the garden where we grow the most and where we can accomplish more than we could individually!
This article is part of the Department of Chemical Engineering Alumni Spotlight series designed to highlight the impact and trajectory of the work of our alumni. Stanford University does not endorse any non-Stanford entities, programs, products, or services listed in the article.
