Elena Liebl
She/Her
I am queer and I am an evolutionary biology research scholar.//
I am currently in a year-long post-baccalaureate program and am applying to grad schools with plans to get a PhD. I’ve always loved animals, like most in biological research, but originally I wanted to be a veterinarian. However, after volunteering in a veterinary clinic and then experiencing research, I realized that research was the right path for me. I’ve been fortunate to find a welcoming community in research, however, one of my first professional experiences was an uncomfortable environment to be working in as a queer person. It was discouraging, but luckily I found a wonderful and accepting lab to join, and have had similar experiences ever since. I hope to encourage others to keep trying even if they have a bad experience, and to show young LGBTQ+ people interested in research that we can be successful without having to hide who we are.