Emily Fabrizio-Stover, 26, was born in Greenwich, but spent most of her time moving between Connecticut and Hong Kong, until graduating from high school. Emily graduated from Wesleyan University in 2018 with a bachelor’s in biology. She is a Ph.D. student in the Neuroscience department at UConn Health Biomedical Science. Her dissertation research focuses on developing an objective test for tinnitus that can be used in both animal research models and human patients. During her research career at UConn Health, Emily has been invited to give talks at international research conferences and has published in international research journals. She has been active in the Graduate Student community as a member of the Graduate Student Organization. She is dedicated to promoting mental health wellness and mental health resources for all graduate students. To this end, Emily has sat on the student behavioral health committee as a student representative. Emily was the first graduate student to attend the student wellness committee to promote sharing of mental health resources between the Medical and Dental Schools with the Graduate School. After graduation, Emily has a position as a research post-doc at the Medical University of South Carolina studying how auditory processing changes with age. Her ultimate goal is to continue to work in academia and teach and continue to inspire love for research in the next generations of scientists. In her free time, Emily enjoys watching movies, doing yoga, knitting, and baking.

Why did you choose UConn Graduate School? What drew you to UConn Health?

When I was first looking at graduate schools, I knew I was interested in neuroscience research, but wasn’t sure exactly what I wanted to do. The umbrella program at UConn Health was appealing to me because it had the flexibility to try new areas of research. Also, I appreciated that the environment wasn’t intensely competitive, and was instead focused on learning.

Did you have a favorite professor, class, or part of the curriculum?

My favorite class was Systems Neuroscience, because as part of the class we were able to study anatomy using human brains. It made the anatomy really click for me and it was really cool to see what I had previously only seen in diagrams.

What activities were you involved in as a student?

I am involved in the Graduate Student Organization in multiple positions over the years, including yearly representative and currently neuroscience representative. I have also been involved in the Neuroscience Program Committee, Student Behavioral Health Committee, Student Wellness Committee, and Young Explorers in Science. I’m very passionate about improving mental health resources for the graduate student community.

Any advice for incoming students?

It’s very easy to limit yourself based on what you believe others think of you. I’ve talked to a number of incoming graduate students that believe they won’t be able to work in the lab they want because they don’t have experience in techniques that lab uses. That is most definitely not true. Good professors will understand that you can learn anything if you’re able to think critically and logically, which if you’re in a graduate program, you can do. So don’t limit yourself based on your past experience!

What’s one thing everyone should do during their time at UConn?

Go to a UConn ice hockey game at the XL Center in Hartford. Tickets are free if you are a student and it’s a lot of fun!

What or who inspired you most to enter health care and/or this field?

I’ve always been interested in neuroscience because at its roots is a study of how we as human beings work and because there are so many unanswered questions. I’m interested in auditory neuroscience in particular because sensory information is how the brain interacts with the world around it and the auditory system is complex so that many things can go wrong with damage and with time.

What did you love most about your experience at UConn Health?

I really enjoyed becoming more competent as a researcher. I also enjoyed interacting with all of the supportive individuals at UConn Health, both within and outside of my department.

What’s it like to be part of UConn, and the significant impact its public service has on the state’s health, workforce and its people?

It’s been really great to see UConn Health’s positive impact on health and I’m proud that I can participate in it.

What’s it going to be like to finally walk across the stage and get your graduate degree this May?

It’s going to feel great knowing that the past five years I have worked really hard to make my impact on the field of auditory neuroscience and that my mentors believe that I have reached a point where I deserve to call myself a Dr.

And what’s next?

A post-doc position at the Medical University of Charleston investigating how auditory processing changes with age.