The unexpected but fulfilling impact of the Hunt Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in my academia career

Abstract

Soon after I graduated with my Ph.D. degree in Physics from Washington State University in 2012 under the supervision of Dr. Philip L. Marston, I applied to the 2013–2014 Hunt Postdoctoral Research Fellowship. I was honored to receive the fellowship that funded my proposed postdoctoral research on acoustic propagation through internal waves under the joint supervision of Dr. Harry L. Swinney at the University of Texas at Austin and Dr. James F. Lynch at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. I am very grateful to the Hunt Fellowship for providing me with the opportunity to shift from analytical work on physical acoustics and fluid dynamics in my Ph.D. study to numerical and laboratory work on underwater acoustics in postdoctoral research. This has broadened the range of tools that I have to address acoustic problems in my academia career. I am fortunate to have had mentors who guided me on an unexpected but fulfilling career path that led me to becoming a faculty member in Physics at the University of Miss...