Meet Stevena Marshall

Stevena Marshall graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology with an Aquatic and Marine Specialization from Bowling Green State University in 2014. She currently works as a Laboratory Technologist at Worley. In her free time, Stevena enjoys aquariums, crochet/knitting, Dungeons & Dragons, video games, volleyball, Reddit, and PokemonGO.

When did your love of STEM begin?

It's difficult to trace my love of STEM over the years because for the longest time, I didn't know I loved it! I was under the impression that you were either creative or logical and that determined your career path with very little room for flexibility. I bounced around several different majors at university, including fine arts, and took aptitude test after aptitude test with varying results. It wasn't until I switched universities to one with a more practical curriculum that I realized science isn't all theory, beakers, and test tubes. Beyond pouring stuff into different containers, there's a fundamental level of creativity needed to think outside the box and find answers that may not exist yet. New breakthroughs and technologies don't come from a test tube, they come from the creative minds of the men and women who drive them!

What is the best part about working in the field of STEM?

The best part about working in STEM is working with people of different backgrounds. When you get to see how different people approach the same problem, you realize very quickly that you don't know everything and neither does anyone else. No scientist is an island! One single data point is nearly useless but as a set, it becomes much more powerful. The only way to capture a robust picture of a situation is to see it from all different perspectives.

What advice would you give young women interested in a career in STEM?

Be active in shaping your life. Figure out what makes you happy, set achievable goals for yourself, and don't beat yourself up when you fail. You can do anything if you can find the first step.