Amanda Kim ’14, M.S. ’16: Searching for a Cure

A few months after Amanda Kim ’14, M.S. ’16, was born, her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. Inspired by her mother’s struggle, Kim knew at an early age that she wanted to improve medical treatment for cancer patients.

Kim is a research technician at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center under the Cancer Biology and Genetics Program, where she works behind the scenes with renowned researchers to study all aspects of various cancers. While her research may not have a direct effect on patients in the short term, Kim is confident that her team’s discoveries will eventually spell a cure for the disease.

Kim held two internships through the Jaggar Community Fellows Program at Adelphi that were critical to her professional journey. The Center for Career and Professional Development first steered her toward an internship at The Estée Lauder Companies, Inc., which proved to be a test of her scientific prowess. “It was my first time applying the techniques I learned in textbooks in a professional laboratory setting,” Kim recalled. As a graduate student, she later interned at the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research in Manhasset, New York, focusing on leukemia research.

The career center helped Kim prepare a strong curriculum vitae and cover letter, and conducted mock interviews so she would feel ready to tackle the real experience head-on. According to Kim, these services placed her a cut above her competition in the professional arena. “As a recent graduate, it’s easy to be stuck in a student mindset,” she said. “But the career center was able to prepare me for the real world.”

Kim also gained substantial experience as a leader on campus at Adelphi. She assisted with orientation for the class of 2017, was president of the Resident Student Association, was a sister of the Epsilon Chapter of the Phi Sigma Sigma sorority and served on the sorority’s executive board as Panhellenic delegate.

While Kim is content with her position in a prestigious laboratory researching cancer biology, she hopes to obtain a Ph.D. in a biological field. Conducting her own research and making a unique contribution to the scientific community are chief among her aspirations.

Kim sees her impressive trajectory as the result of many life-changing experiences at Adelphi. “I am very grateful for all the different opportunities [the University] provided me with,” she said. “I can’t imagine having studied anywhere else.”