Background: No prior science background
Stem Cell Internship: Fisher Lab, UCSF
Current Career: Scientist II, Genentech
Alan was initially hired directly from his stem cell internship into as a Research Associate in the Muench Lab at Vitalant. He now works as a Scientist at Genentech.
Muench and Fisher lab members and alum at the CCSF Biosymposium with Alan Gutierrez (back row, third from the left).
Hi, my name is Alan Gutierrez and I was a CCSF CIRM intern in 2013 at UCSF in Dr. Susan J. Fisher's Laboratory with my mentor Dr. Alicia Barcena. I spent 2 years taking classes in the CCSF biotech program before I became an intern. I now work at Vitalant Research Institute, Dr. Marcus Muench Laboratory, in San Francisco, Ca.
When I started at CCSF, I was only a high school graduate and after having various jobs, I started to see that my income would never rise above a certain level. I was lucky enough to go back to school and CCSF allowed me to explore what I was good at and interested in. I started the Music, then Broadcast Media and Electronic Arts programs before switching to biotechnology.
There are many things to consider before enrolling in any certificate program, such as finances, time, work, family, and goals. My main concern was finding where my passion lies. It took 3 different programs, but biotechnology was the one that spoke to my soul and mind. I was always interested in how things work and now I can do that on a cellular and molecular level. Biotech let me explore these areas while challenging my mind.
I was 30 years old when I went back to CCSF and I had to complete all the general education from scratch. I also started to take music performance and composition classes. Soon after, I switched to Broadcast Media and Electronic Arts, where I received my first internship. Everything went well and I was successful but not in love with the job. I then switched to Biotechnology.
The best thing, personally, that happened because of CCSF Biotech was meeting my wife, Iris. We had many of the same general education classes because we both were trying to transfer to university. Once I found out she was taking biotech classes, I fell in love. We married in Hawaii in 2017 and are both alumni of CCSF Biotech.
The stem cell internship not only taught me lab techniques but also, interpersonal skills to get the maximum from collaborations and about myself - how I learn and grow.
CCSF Biotech gave me the opportunity to learn skills for a new career and has provided support long after the internship. I am still in contact with many of the coordinators of the CCSF Biotech program. Keeping them tight in my network has allowed me to participate in workshops, meetings, and to mentor new CCSF biotech interns.
What advice would you offer to current and future students? What would you tell them to expect as a student of the Biotech program?
This would be a different answer for everyone. But for me, I wanted to find my passion because I didn’t want to work at a job I didn’t like, I wanted a career that I loved. This took me down many roads but eventually I found Biotech. Once I decided to complete the Stem Cell Program, I dived in with everything I had and didn’t let anything get in my way.
