Alumni Outcomes & Current Positions

The training philosophy of the GPN is to provide each student with a particularly strong start to their neuroscientific career with the training they will need to excel wherever their career path leads, whether it be to academics, industry, policy, or elsewhere.

"The GPN provided me with the broad academic background and focused research experience that I needed to develop as a young scientist, and the enthusiasm of the faculty and other students created an exciting environment in which to begin my research career."
Bruno Averbeck, Ph.D. 2001; Unit Chief, National Institute of Mental Health

"One of the major reasons I believe I have been successful in establishing my own laboratory for the study of pain...is that I had fantastic, broad, and in-depth training from a tremendous number of pain-focused investigators at the University of Minnesota."
Cheryl Stucky, Ph.D. 1995; Professor, Medical College of Wisconsin

 

 Career Choices of GPN PhD Graduates*
   Number %
Academic Faculty 69 33.3
In Postdoctoral/Residency Training 47 22.7
Science-Related Non-Research 16 7.7
Practicing Physician 17 8.2
Industry 38 17.9
Other 7 3.4
Academic Administration/Staff 14 6.9
     
Totals  207 100
     
*This table includes GPN graduates since program inception in 1986. Academic faculty includes individuals who hold faculty positions at institutions of higher education in the US and abroad. Science-related non-research includes patent law, technology transfer, business development, scientific writing, science policy and other similar careers.

Alumni Current Positions

: A : B : C : D : E : F : G : H : I : J : K : L : M : N : O : P : Q : R : S : T : U : V : W : X : Y : Z :

 

A

Current Position
Joanna Abrams - 2008 St. Louis Community College
Science/Physical Education Departments
Faculty
Sandra Alcala - 2009 U.S. House of Representatives
Chief of Staff, Rep. Filemon Vela
Fatou Amar - 2015 Columbia University Medical Center
Pathology and Cell Biology
Postdoctoral Associate
Brian Andersen - 2013 Massachusetts General
Neuro-oncology Fellowship
Michelle Davies (Arnhold) - 2008 University of Wisconsin Superior
Departments of Neuroscience & Physiology
Associate Professor
Bruno Averbeck - 2001 National Institutes of Health
Principal Investigator
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B

  
Justin Barnes - 2011 Medical Science Liaison, Tris Pharma
Alexandra Basford - 2008 Macmillan Science Communication
Assistant Publisher
Lisa Bellavance English - 1997 Just HealthTech, LLC
Founder & Principal Medical Writer
Kyle Biesecker - 2016 Navigant
Senior Consultant
Rachael Blackman - 2013 Brown University,
Department of Psychiatry
Adult Psychiatry Residency Program
Murray Blackmore - 2005 Marquette University
Department of Biomedical Sciences
Assistant Professor
Krista Bluske - 2012 Curation Scientist, Illumina
Mark Brady - 1999 North Dakota State University
Department of Psychology
Assistant Professor
Katya Brunette - 2009 University of Nebraska Medical Center, Surgery Department
Research Technician
Terence Burns - 2007 Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery, Assistant Professor Neuroscience, Department of Neurologic Surgery, Mayo Clinic
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C

  
Bridget Campion - 2009 Covance, Inc
Medical Writer II
Danita Carlson - 1993 Allina - Park Nicollet Clinic
MD - Internal Medicine and Geriatrics
Erik Carlson - 2008

University of Washington, Department of Psychiatry
Assistant Professor
Ian Cheong - 2018 University of Minnesota
School of Medicine
Medical Student
Ben Clark - 2009 University of Minnesota, IACUC
Office of the Vice President of Research
Assistant Director
John Patrick (JP) Clark - 2004 University of California, San Francisco
Anesthesia and Perioperative Care
Assistant Adjunct Professor & Surgical Neurophysiologist
Nathan Connors - 2004 NCC Medical & Scientific Communications LLC
Owner/Medical Writer
Patricia Costello - 2003 Walden University
Professor
Psychology Program Director
Samuel Cramer - 2014 University of Minnesota
Neurolgical Surgery Resident
Kevin Crisp - 2003 St. Olaf College
Biology Department and Neuroscience Program
Program Director, Associate Professor
David Crowe - 2001 Augsburg College
Department of Biology
Associate Professor
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D

  
Robert Dado - 1992 Private Practice
Anesthesiologist
Steve Davidson - 2009 University of Cincinnati
Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology
Nancy Day - 2011 UCLA
Stephanie A White Lab
Postdoctoral Fellow
Stacy Decker - 2012 Baylor College of Medicine
Postdoctoral Associate
Robert Dunbar - 2002 University of Minnesota - Rochester
Center for Learning Innovation
Associate Professor
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E

  
Kevin Engel - 2001 Hennepin County Medical Center
Chief of Ophthalmology
University of Minnesota
Department of Ophthalmology
Assistant Professor
Alan Ernst - 2001 California Northstate University, College of Medicine, Department of Anatomy
Assistant Professor
Rogene Eichler West - 1996 Brain Health Northwest, LLC
Clinical Neuroscientist and Founding Partner
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F

  
Erwin Ferri - 2009 Elsa Luis and Associates, LLC
Grant Writing Associate
Antonio Fortes - 2005 Millenium Capital Management
Senior Portfolio Manager
Dan Franc - 2008 Pacific Neuroscience Institute.Co-Director, Adult Hydrocephalus Center, Department of Neurology
Ada Fraticelli - 2001 Engineering Psychologist, U.S. Navy
Stephanie Fretham - 2010
(Bohmer)		 Luther College
Department of Biology
Assistant Professor
Joe Fullmer - 2004 SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY
Assistant Professor of Pathology, Assistant Director of Neuropathology/Muscle Pathology, Associate Residency Program Director of Pathology
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G

  
Marc Galeazza - 1994 IBM
Managing Consultant
Scott Gehler - 2004 Augustana College
Department of Biology
Associate Professor
James Gielissen - 2009 St Paul College
Department of Biology
Adjunct faculty
Laura Gilchrist - 1996 St. Catherine University
Professor, Director of the Doctor of Physical Therapy Program
Virginia Goettl - 1996 The Ohio State University-Wexner Medical Center
Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia Experimental Therapeutics Research Laboratory
Research Associate
Jose Gomez - 2000 St. Mary's Medical Center, Duluth
Critical Care Medicine/Intensive Care Physician
Timothy Gomez - 1995 University of Wisconsin - Madison
Waisman Center
Professor of Neuroscience
Cory Goracke-Postle - 2007 University of Minnesota
Office of the Vice President for Research
Research Director
Susan Griemel - 2014 University of Minnesota
FIT-AD
Project Manager
Jack Grinband - 2002 Columbia University
Department of Neurology/Radiology
Assistant Professor
Kellie Gross - 2017 University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee
Department of Psychology
Postdoctoral Fellow
Rachel Groth - 2006 Centers for Therapeutic Innovation, Pfizer, Inc.
Senior Principal Scientist
Eric Gustafson - 2009 University of Minnesota
Department of Neuroscience
Research Scientist
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H

  
Matthew Hagen - 2004 University of Cincinnati UC College of Medicine
Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
Assistant Professor
Maureen Handoko - 2012 Baylor College of Medicine
Pediatric Neurology
Resident-Class of 2019
Leah Hanson - 2001 Regions Hospital
Director, Alzheimer's Research
Valerie Hedges - 2011 Northern Michigan University
Biology
Assistant Professor
Stephen Helms Tillery - 1994 Arizona State University
School of Biological and Health Systems Engineering
Associate Professor
Dori Henderson - 2001 University of Minnesota
MnDRIVE Program Manager
Angela Hewitt - 2013 Mayo Clinic - Child Neurology
Resident
Katherine Himes - 2007 American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS, Science and Technology Policy Overseas Fellowship
Science and Technology Diplomacy Fellow
Abbey Holt - 2016 University of Oxford
Medical Research Council Brain Network Dynamics Unit
Postdoctoral Scientist
Katie Howe (Mitschele) - 2010
 		 Be The Match (National Marrow Donor Program)
Immunogenetic Operations and Research
Senior Search Strategist
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I

  
Marissa Iden Boulware - 2007 Medical College of Wisconsin
Obstetrics and Gynecology
Research Assistant II
Anna Ingebretson - 2017 University of Minnesota
Center for Addiction Neuroscience (UMnCAN)
Postdoctoral Research Associate
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J

  
Jadin Jackson - 2006 Medtronic
Senior Manager of Neuroscience and Data Science
Elizabeth Jansen - 1997 Macalester College
Biology - Mayo Innovation Scholars Program
Assistant Professor
Trenton Jerde - 2004

Senior Editor, Nature Machine Intelligence, Springer Nature
Lisa Johanek - 2004 Medtronic
Principal Medical Affairs Specialist
Adam Johnson - 2008

Boston University, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Adjunct Assistant Professor

Bethel University
Psychology Department
Assistant Professor
Nathan Jorgensen - 2007 Qatar Investment  Authority
Lyric Jorgenson - 2005 National Institutes of Health
Deputy Director of the Office of Science Policy
William Jurney - 2001 Faculty member, Century College.
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K

  
Kristen Kallestad - 2009
(Thorstenson)		 Ridgeview Medical Center and Clinics, Physician
James Katter - 1993 Fairview Health Services
Family Practice, Pediatric Internal Medicine
C. Dirk Keene - 2003 Associate Professor, Nancy & Buster Alvord Endowed Chair in Neuropathology, Director of the Neuropathology Fellowship Program, Divison of Neuropathology, Department of Pathology
University of Washington, WA
Lois Kehl - 1996 Minnesota Head and Neck Pain Clinic, University of Minnesota
U of MN Department of Anesthesiology
DDS; TMJ & Orofacial Pain Management Specialist; Assistant Professor
Bruce Kennedy - 2016 Medtronics
Senior Clinical Affairs Specialist
Stephen Kerrigan - 2014 Manager, Pathways Consulting, Missouri
Stanislav Kholmanskikh - 2002 Weill Cornell Medical College
Neuroscience
Assistant Professor of Research
Holly Kordasiewicz - 2006
(Brownrigg)		 Isis Pharmaceuticals
Neuroscience
Associate Director
Tess Kornfield - 2015 thredUP
Data Scientist
Marcos Kuroki - 2013 Pennsylvania State College of Medicine
Milton S Hershey Medical Center, General Surgery Residency Program
Zeb Kurth-Nelson - 2009

DeepMind Technologies, London U.K. Research Scientist
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L

  
Aaron Lambert - 2015 Harvard University
Postdoctoral Research Associate
Fred Langheim - 2004 UW School of Medicine and Public Health Madison, WI
Department of Psychiatry
Medical Director C&L Psychiatry, Staff Psychiatrist, Clinical Adjunct Assistant Professor
Erin Larson - 2006 University of Minnesota
MnDrive Optogenetics Core
Associate Director
Heather Leong - 2011 Oklahoma State University
Med School - student
Therissa Libby - 2005 Metropolitan State University
Human Services, Alcohol and Drug Counseling
Assistant Professor
David Linden - 1999 Mayo Clinic School of Medicine
Physiology and Biomedical Engineering
Associate Professor of Physiology
Jessie Luoma - 2010 Stanford University
Postdoctoral Associate
Jessica Lynch - 2006 Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson and Johnson
Associate Scientific Director
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M

  
Carol Ma(Huifang) - 2006 Dentist, Private Practise
Chani Maher (Becker) - 2016 Pairnomix
Director of Business Operations
Marcela Maldonado (Barajas) - 2009 Prolacta Bioscience
Quality Control Principle Analyst
Peter Malen - 1997 Viksnins Harris Padys Malen LLP
Partner & Patent Attorney
Bonnie Marsick - 2010 ScienCell Research Laboratories
Associate Director, Research Scientist
Monica Metea - 2006

Smithers Viscient, Environmental Fate and Metabolism, Director

Owner, Preclinical Electrophysiology Consulting, LLC
Nancy Michael (Staffend) - 2012 University of Notre Dame - College of Science
Department of Biological Sciences
Assistant Teaching Professor, Director of Undergraduate Studies Neuroscience and Behavior
Eric Miller - 2013 University of Alabama at Birmingham
Post-Doctoral Fellow
Anusha Mishra - 2011

Oregon Health & Science University
Knight Cardiovascular Institute
Assistant Professor
Craig Moodie - 2014 Stanford University
Psychology
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Leigh Ann Mrotek - 2005 Marquette University
Department of Biomedical Engineering
Research Professor
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N

  
Vivek Nagaraj - 2017 Artificial Intelligence Scientist, Honeywell Aerospace
Jennifer Nagode - 2003 Private Practice
Psychiatry
MD
Amy Naleid (MacDonald) - 2005 Wayzata Public Schools
SDC Program
CMS Social Worker
Thomas Naselaris - 2005 Medical University of South Carolina
Neuroscience
Associate Professor
Meredith Noetzel - 2009 Insight Genetics Inc
Quality and Regulatory Affairs Manager
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O

  
Scott Oakman - 1997

Hennipen County Medical Center, Regions Hospital, Psychiatry Training Program
MD, Program Director

University of Minnesota, Department of Psychiatry, Assistant Professor
Catherine Ojakangas - 1992 University of Chicago
Neurosurgery
Assistant Professor, Research Associate
Cheryl Olman - 2003 University of Minnesota
CLA Psychology
Associate Professor
Timothy Olson - 2000 Interventional Spine Care
Anesthesiology, Pain Management
MD, Staff Physician
Xilma Ortiz-Gonzalez - 2004 The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia - Research Institute
Center for Mitochondrial and Epigenomic Medicine (CMEM)
MD, Assistant Professor
Aaron Overland - 2010 Essen Bioscience, Ann Arbor
Senior Application Scientist
Ed Overstreet - 2000 Overstreet Consulting, Neurelec/Oticon Medical
Product Management, FDA Regulatory Affairs and Advanced Product Development
President, Engineer
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P

  
Andrew Papale - 2015 University of Pittsburgh
Postdoctoral Associate
Marc Parent - 2010 Research and Development,
Sandia National Laboratories
Ann Parsons - 1996 University of Wisconsin - Stout
Biology Department
Professor
Rachel Penrod-Martin - 2012

Medical University of South Carolina, Department of Neuroscience                Research Assistant Professor
Claudio Perez-Leighton - 2012 Universidad Andres Bello, Chile
Assistant Professor
Judit Perez-Ortiz - 2016 University of Kansas
School of Medicine
Postdoctoral Associate
Brittni Peterson - 2016 Nelsen Biomedical
Consultant
Marc Pisansky - 2016 University of Minnesota
Department of Neuroscience
Postdoctoral Fellow
James Pomonis - 1998 American Preclinical Services
Senior Director, Pharmacology Services
Nicholas Port - 1997 Indiana University
School of Optometry
Associate Professor
Carl Potenzieri - 2009 National Institutes of Health
NIH National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
Health Program Specialist
Nate Powell - 2015 University of British Columbia
Postdoctoral Fellow
Joshua Puhl - 2011

College of the Sequoias

Assistant Professor
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Q

  
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R

  
Anna Radke (Harrison) - 2011 Miami University, Department of Psychology
Assistant Professor
Robert Raike - 2004 Medtronic, Neuromodulation
Principal Scientist
Paul Regier - 2015 University of Pennsylvania
Postdoctoral Associate
Ken Reinert - 2006 LendPro LLC, Pittsburgh
Softward Analyst and Computational Neuroscientist
Patrick Rothwell - 2010 University of Minnesota
Department of Neuroscience
Assistant Professor
Audrey Royer (Smith)- 2011 Writer
Mount Penguin Press
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S

  
Jose San Miguel-Ruiz - 2014 University of Minnesota
Orthopedic Residency Program
Catherine Satterfield - 2008 Hoya Vision Care
Manager of Customer Development
Michael Paul Schallmo - 2014

University of Minnesota
Department of Psychology
Assistant Professor
Tiffany Schmidt - 2010 Northwestern University
Department of Neurobiology
Assistant Professor
Neil Schmitzer-Torbert - 2004 Wabash College
Psychology
Associate Professor, Department Chair
Blaine Schneider - 2011 Philips
Manager of Disease State Research
Cicely Schramm - 2010 Essen BioScience
Principal Scientist
Kristin Schreiber - 2004 Brigham and Women's Hospital
Anesthesia and Pain Management
MD, Anesthesiologist, Clinical Regional Fellow, Research Fellow
Katrina Schrode - 2014 Johns Hopkins School of Medicine
Center for Hearing and Balance
Postdoctoral Fellow
Dan Schuster - 2013 Medtronic
Study Director
Sharad Shanbhag - 1999 Northeast Ohio Medical University
Anatomy/Neurobiology
Research Assistant Professor
Jennifer Schumacher - 2010 3M
Otolaryngology-HNS
Research Specialist
Robert Shannon - 2012 3M
Research Scientist
Samuel Shuster - 1999 Neuromics, Inc.
President
Amila Silva - 1999 Kaiser Ontario Medical Center
Ophthalmologist, Chief of Ophthalmology
Lawrence Silvermintz - 2002 Software Engineer, Biomedical Inventor and Technical Writer
Romina Sosa - 2005 Baylor College of Medicine
Hematology and Oncology
Assistant Professor
Anja Srienc - 2015 Washington University School of Medicine
Neurosurgery Resident
Adam Steiner - 2014 Minnesota State University, Mankato, Assistant Professor
Chris Stern - 2010 L.E.K. Consulting
Engagement Manager, Biopharma and Life Sciences
Eric Stevens - 2007 Oroville, CA
MD Ophthalmologist
Laura Stone - 1999 McGill University
Faculty of Dentistry, Alan Edwards Centre for Research on Pain
Associate Professor
Laura Stone - 2014 University of Minnesota
Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery
Postdoctoral Research Associate
Jeff Stott - 2015 Dartmouth
Postdoctoral Fellow
Martha Streng - 2017 University of Minnesota
Department of Neuroscience
Postdoctoral Fellow
Cheryl Stucky - 1995 Medical College of Wisconsin
Dept of Cell Biology, Neurobiology & Anatomy
Professor, Director of Neuroscience Doctoral Program
Steve Sullivan - 2011 Oregon Health Sciences University
Postdoctoral Fellow
Brian Sweis - 2018 University of Minnesota
School of Medicine
Medical Student
   
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T

  
Serena Thompson - 2009 Medical College of Wisconsin
Department of Neurology
Assistant Professor
Andy Thorpe - 2004 Celgene, Richmond, VA
Medical Affairs
Katherine Tonn Eisinger - 2018 Duke University
Neurobiology
Postdoctoral Associate
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U

  
Yve Ulrich-Lai - 2002 University of Cinncinnati, Metabolic Diseases Institute, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience
Associate Professor
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V

  
Britta Veitenheimer Rupp - 2013 NAMSA
Medical Research Manager
Ruben Velazquez - 1998 Puerto Rico
Otolaryngologist
Toby Velte - 1995 Amazon Web Services
Enterprise Account Executive
Tou Yia Vue - 2010

The University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center
Department of Neurosciences
Assistant Professor
Lucy Vulchanova - 1998 University of Minnesota
Department of Neuroscience
Associate Professor
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W

  
Jon Waataja - 2007 EnteroMedics
Director of Research
Diana Wallin - 2017 Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center/Dartmouth College
Department of Psychiatry
Postdoctoral Fellow
Scott Warren - 2016 Brown University/Rhode Island Hospital
Resident in Neurology
Jason Weick - 2005 University of New Mexico
Department of Neurosciences
Associate Professor
Katherine Weiner (Fallen) - 2014 Medtronic, Senior Clinical Research Specialist
Marcus Westerman - 2001 Park Nicollet-Melrose Center
Psychiatry, MD
Katie Wiens - 2006 Christopher Newport University
Molecular Biology, Neurobiology
Assistant Professor
Tim Wiggin - 2015 Brandeis University
Postdoctoral Fellow
Andrew Wikenheiser - 2014 UCLA
Assistant Professor
Cheri Williams - 1992 Oracle
Technology Executive
Christy Willoughby - 2009 Streetlight Data
Data Scientist
Cheryl Wotus - 2003 Seattle University
College of Engineering and Science
Associate Professor, Department of Biology

Emily Wozniak (Leathley) - 2016

 Cell Culture Company, Director of Marketing
Shannon Wright - 2002 University of Minnesota
Integrative Biology/Physiology
MD Student Project Assistant
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X

  
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Y

  
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Z

  
Roberto Zayas - 2005 St. Olaf College
Piper Center for Vocation and Career
Associate Director of Entrepreneurship, Faculty Advisor for Mayo Innovations Scholars, and Pre-Law Advisor
Jennifer Zick - 2018 University of Minnesota
Medical School
Medical Student
Natalie Zlebnik - 2014 University of Maryland - School of Medicine
Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology
Postdoctoral Fellow
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