Her Story
About Kavya
Kavya Ananthaswamy has spent 9 years building expertise in research focused on biology and human diseases. After earning a bachelor's degree in biotechnology, she completed a master's thesis involving diabetes research with pomegranate extracts in mice models. She then joined a prestigious research institute in India, gaining skills in flow cytometry for single-cell analysis, before serving as an associate scientist at BioCon R&D Center in translational sciences studying cancers and small molecule compounds. Seeking deeper end-to-end knowledge, she returned to academia at Purdue University, where she secured a prestigious Pulse program fellowship and is now in the final year of her PhD. Her current research centers on immunotherapy and drug discovery methods to identify novel compounds for autoimmune diseases and cancer. Kavya actively participates in Purdue's Women in Science program. She attributes her success to a combination of family support and personal perseverance, and she values having purpose and reasoning in her work, driven by personal family experiences with cancer and rheumatoid arthritis to add value to society through education and research.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Kavya
01What do you attribute your success to?
It's a combination of both supporting family and perseverance. Sometimes you don't get that platform so that's where perseverance and being stubborn matters. Stand your ground. It's a bit of both. Understanding family that sacrifices happen from every member.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Develop a strong personality. It's right to ask and want to do things. Go for opportunities. Get in touch with teachers and professors. Show interest and curiosity. Women should start wanting things and go get what they want. Reach out to people for resources and access to information. I did not come from a family of scientists but pursued it anyway.
03What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
Challenges include gender dynamics, needing to make your stand and be stubborn, resilience, having a voice and speaking up, not being scared. Women face phases like marriage and children, organizations should value that not penalize careers, gender disparity in pay. Opportunities: find right place to work with equality programs, right boss or mentor, right organization like Purdue with Women in Science program providing support on CVs, childbirth navigation, living away from family.
04What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Have a purpose and proper reasoning. Know why you're doing something, passion comes from within. I want to cure diseases because I've seen family members suffer from cancer and rheumatoid arthritis. Value add to society with education. Make something out of it, don't let it go to waste. Everybody has to understand their value point and give back to society.
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