Meet 2024 Award Recipient
Megan Catherine Schwarz
Megan came to the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai from Barnard College, where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology. Previously, Megan worked in two Mount Sinai labs as a research technician. Megan entered the PhD in Biomedical Sciences program in 2019.
Megan defended her PhD in January 2024 in the lab of Dr. Ernesto Guccione. Her thesis work was split between a COVID-19 and cancer biology project. During the pandemic, Megan helped to design and validate a novel diagnostic test to quantify SARS-CoV-2 antigen-specific T cells. Megan simultaneously completed an investigation into the role of PRDM15 in hepatocellular carcinoma. Throughout her graduate school years, Megan devoted time to gaining an education in the commercial aspects of biology by becoming a Mount Sinai Innovation Partners Fellow and a finalist in Nucleate’s 2023 Activator Program. She was also passionate about mentorship and participated in the Center for Excellence in Youth Education’s (CEYE) various high school programs offered at Mount Sinai. Megan was honored to mentor two exceptional students, Kemuel Nuñez and Deonte Theard. She also offered mentorship to her lab mates, particularly Kensey Portman, a recent Master’s graduate from Icahn Mount Sinai.
Megan would like to thank her mentor, lab mates, family, friends, husband, and pets, who supported her graduate school journey. She considers herself extremely lucky to have had many fantastic examples of mentorship throughout her academic career. She would also like to thank those who nominated her for this award.
After graduation, Megan plans to wrap up some ongoing projects as a postdoc in the Center for OncoGenomics and Innovative Therapeutics, which is spearheaded by her PhD advisor. Ultimately, Megan hopes to move to a position in the biotech industry where she will continue pursuing translational work that will have a noticeable impact on the healthcare community. Throughout her career, Megan is determined to remain a dedicated and enthusiastic mentor.