Her Story
About Mia
I discovered linguistics in high school through a psychology course where I read an article entitled something like 'How Language Influences Thinking,' focusing on the cognitive linguistics aspect. I was fascinated and decided this was what I wanted to study. I stayed interested throughout my education and found my specific passion within sociolinguistics, which examines how language varies according to social factors. I completed my undergrad at UNC Chapel Hill and did my master's at NC State University with a well-known sociolinguist as my mentor. I fell in love with the field from an early age and never really looked back. After completing my master's, I transitioned to industry in 2022, working first at a management consulting firm outside Philadelphia for 2 years, where I used a linguistics-based consulting methodology, conducted linguistics research, served as a consultant, and had business development responsibilities. I then moved to my current role at Verilog, a healthcare market research company, where we record and analyze conversations between patients and doctors at the point of care. My linguistics expertise in conversational discourse analysis helps us make insights relevant to our healthcare clients. What drew me to this role was the rich and unique data from a linguistics perspective and the value placed upon my expertise in linguistics. This common thread of language has been the guiding force throughout my career.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Mia
01What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I think when you're starting off, it's a matter of just absorbing everything you can. When you're young, you have the opportunity and maybe the openness to have just a broad exposure to different areas within your industry, different intersections between what you do and a related position, or what your colleagues do. I think that when you're early in your career, and especially in today's age with the way that AI is changing the way we work, having multiple possible paths and pivot points is really key. The sort of adaptability and flexibility is crucial in that way. I think taking it all in while you are young and early, and before you're super specialized, and finding what you like, and figuring out where your passions lie, and where you see a career for yourself, obviously based on your interests, but where you think you can have space to grow, and what challenges you, and what pushes you. I feel lucky to have followed my interests and have it lead me to a place in a role, in a company, in a position that continues to sort of push what I know and challenge my thinking. I would definitely recommend the openness to different possibilities in that way, because careers are not so linear as one might think.
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