Meet Viraj Ghosh. Ghosh is a second year Ph.D. Candidate in the Department of Bioengineering at Rice University. Ghosh is from California and is a Rice Graduate Ambassador. Ambassadors are students who represent the university and help prospective students gain knowledge of student life as a graduate student at Rice.
Ghosh chose Rice as a graduate school because of his passion for research. His research focuses on designing equipment to interrogate how Ewing Sarcoma, a rare and aggressive pediatric bone cancer, proteins physically interact with DNA.
When he is not conducting research, he serves in various leadership roles within the Rice community. He is a part of the Bioengineering Graduate Student Association (BIOE GSA) on campus and Docappella.
Ghosh advises prospective students to do their research on the school and program of their choice before fullying committing.
“Make sure you are picking a PI that you can work with for seven years of your life,” said Ghosh. “It doesn’t matter what research you’re doing but pick well.”
Ghosh advises current students to protect their free time and always be kind to themselves during this chapter of their life.
“Grad school is really busy, but ensuring that you protect the time you need to sleep, eat, socialize, and relax is crucial to being healthy, happy, and productive over the four to seven years a Ph.D. takes,” said Ghosh.
Outside of academics, Ghosh enjoys eating at Yoyo’s Hot Dogs, going to Hermann Park, and being close to the Texas Medical Center.
Since the age of ten, Ghosh swims from the Alcatraz shore without a wetsuit.
Graduate ambassadors can be contacted via email at gradambassadors@rice.edu. Viraj Ghosh can be contacted directly by email at viraj@rice.edu