About Amber
About me
I created (the blog formerly known as) Miss Enginerd in 2019 to build a community for women in STEM and to help them navigate this stressful and sometimes intimidating career path.
I know first hand all the confusion and frustration that comes from working in a traditionally male-dominated field. From picking the right major or grad school right down to more fluffy matters like performing at your A-game (i.e., eating nutritious food, exercising, having a good skincare regimen, how to stay organized).
Hi! I’m Amber! I recently earned my Ph.D. in Chemical and Biological Engineering. Between my first and second semester of grad school, my mother passed away from metastatic breast cancer. Since then, I’ve grown to become extremely passionate about being the best version of myself, living life to the fullest, making my mom proud, and most importantly, helping others do the same.
In my spare time, I enjoy hiking, yoga, reading, cheering on the University of Kentucky Wildcats (#BigBlueNation), and rapping along to songs that have no correlation to my everyday life.
I promise the longer you hang out with me, the more you’re going to start seeing life through a different (if not better) lense. Rose-tinted glasses, anyone?
So head on over to the blog, and let’s get started. And again, welcome!
The Journey
I was born and raised in eastern South Dakota. For as long as I can remember, I’ve loved school and learning. As a child, I read A LOT (I still do, actually). I was interested in several different subjects, but the human body especially fascinated me. I figured I would become a medical doctor when I grew up. Throughout elementary, middle, and high school, I explored many different career options from becoming a journalist to a psychologist to a neuroscientist before I settled on chemical engineering.
During my junior year of high school, my chemistry class took a field trip to a nearby ethanol plant. I thought it was THE COOLEST THING EVER to be able to take something renewable like corn and turn it into fuel. That experience and the fact that I was pretty decent at chemistry and math led me to pursue chemical engineering. I spent 4.5 years working on my undergraduate degree, which included an 8-month co-op experience working for Cargill in Blair, NE, and a summer research experience at the University of Kentucky. I graduated from South Dakota School of Mines with my BS in Chemical Engineering with an emphasis in Biochemical Engineering in December 2010.
After graduating, I spent several months living at home in order to care for my mom. She had been diagnosed in the summer of 2009 with metastatic breast cancer and was undergoing treatment. In August of 2011, I moved to Lexington, KY, and started graduate school at the University of Kentucky. Between my first and second semester, my mom took a turn for the worse and passed away. My entire world turned upside down. I received my Master’s degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences two years later in 2013. From there, I moved back to my home state of South Dakota and took a year off to work part-time and reevaluate my dream of earning a Ph.D. Eventually, I returned to SDSM&T to pursue a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering, which I completed in summer 2019.
Do you remember the ethanol plant I toured in high school? I now work for that company, the world’s largest biofuels company, as a Process Development Engineer.
Ready to make your dreams come true?
Do you need help navigating the trenches of being an engineering major, surviving grad school, or excelling in your career?
Please check out my current services below!