Women in Science Celebration: Interview with Dr. Linda Molla

Please, tell us a little bit about yourself:

I have been living in NYC since 2006 and really enjoy the energy the city offers and meeting people from diverse cultures and backgrounds. I hold a Bachelor of Art degree in Molecular Biology from the City University of New York - Hunter College (New York) and a PhD in Molecular Biology from The Rockefeller University (New York). Currently I am senior project associate at Regeneron Pharmaceuticals in Tarrytown, NY. My main responsibilities include coordination of research portfolio activities, functioning as a central liaison between diverse cross-functional research teams with the goal of driving programs closer to the clinical development stages. In my free time I enjoy travelling, biking and spending time with family and friends.

'Implementing changes to reward good leadership and provide constructive feedback to address ineffective management practices would overall create healthier academic lab environments and help retain women in science.'

What do you think the roadblocks are to representation of women in science? How can we improve women’s visibility in science?

I think better visibility and representation of women in science can be achieved by creating an environment that retains women that are interested in a science career. The current academic system does a great job at rewarding individual successes of leaders of labs as measured by number of high impact scientific papers published and number of grants rewarded, but I think that is not enough. Rewarding leaders for how they manage and help employees or trainees to develop to achieve their goals (within or outside an academic science) should also be rewarded and factored in tenure and promotion decisions. Deeper structural changes are needed within academia to incorporate 360-degree feedback to help develop leaders. Implementing changes to reward good leadership and provide constructive feedback to address ineffective management practices would overall create healthier academic lab environments and help retain women in science.

'If we want to impact change, each and every one of us needs to speak up in our workplaces.'

What are your thoughts on the pressure that women face in having to make a choice between starting a family and progressing their career?

In today’s world many scientists relocate away from families to continue their careers and this can make it challenging to grow a family while at the same time investing in one’s career.
I am in favor of workplace changes to help women and men better balance career and family. Changes I am in favor of are providing affordable daycare centers for all families (no matter the income brackets), implementing paternity and maternity leave, allowing for flexible work hours and ability to work remotely when needed. If we want to impact change, each and every one of us needs to speak up in our workplaces.
In the USA, additional layers of complexity are faced by immigrant scientists who are vulnerable to illogical and convoluted immigration policies. USA is very welcoming of foreign science talent but does not provide a proper timely path to permanent residency for those who want to stay in the USA to build their scientific careers and grow their families. Such unfriendly immigration policies not openly communicated by recruiting universities or companies add huge uncertainty on women’s career progression and their families.

'Build genuine relationships with others.'

What advice would you give yourself if you were starting your career today? What would you say to encourage other women to persevere in their career path?

Build genuine relationships with others. Invest time in surrounding yourself with a strong support system with many mentors and friends that can provide advice or be a sounding board during key decisions. Be involved with your community where you live, work, or study and try to support and constructively give back. Always pay it forward.