(31a) Building an Industrial Research Career in Polymer Science

Polymers, having a seemingly infinite number of configurations, behaviors, and applications, piqued my interest for their versatility. My journey with polymer research began as an undergraduate researcher in the field of block copolymer self-assembly. As I transitioned to industry, I was able to take the experimental design and problem solving skills I had developed and apply them in a new-to-me field of adhesives research and product development. I’ll share how industrial research to create products ranging from repositionable window adhesives to permanent semi-structural adhesives has provided a wealth of substantial fundamental and practical challenges and the opportunity to learn from and teach others.