Marguerite Langwig

I am a research technician for Dr. Brett Baker. My research utilizes metagenomics to understand microbial ecology in diverse systems. One of the most exciting parts of science is working with other women as a mentor and collaborator. And the gratification of realizing we can code, run scripts, make amazing scientific figures, and do groundbreaking scientific work that we were told for a long time we could not :-)

A challenge I face, as most women do, is imposter syndrome. The worry that you aren't worthy, good enough, smart enough, or talented enough can be paralyzing and prevent you from accomplishing daily tasks or have difficulty presenting your work.

My current day role model is Jillian Banfield. Because I am consistently amazed at the work her lab produces, her publications, and her role in the conception of metagenomics as it exists today. Past is Rosalind Franklin because her discovery of the structure of DNA is incredible!!

My sense is that there are more women in science obtaining PhDs (in the United States) compared to the past 20-50 years. Though this is encouraging, several issues are still apparent; the majority of women obtaining PhDs are white, the number of female students is not necessarily reflected in faculty composition, and women are especially not reflected in academic leadership positions (e.g. department heads, full professors, directors, deans, etc.). I think the U.S. has a long way to go in making academic culture friendly to women so they are encouraged to stay, and even more work to do in recruiting and retaining underrepresented women. I am also discouraged by recent publications identifying biases in academic journals where manuscripts by female corresponding authors had more negative outcomes compared to male corresponding authored papers. Clearly there is room for improvement for women in STEM.