4th Year PhD Student, Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, University of Cambridge

Gates-Cambridge Scholar

Emily is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in the Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience Lab led by Professor Sarah-Jayne Blakemore. Her Ph.D. research focuses primarily on social isolation in adolescents, investigating the effects of isolation and loneliness on fear learning and mental health. Through the use of high definition magnetic resonance imaging, she is also exploring structural associations between the brain and one's response to social isolation. In addition, Emily seeks to examine whether virtual social interactions (such as the use of smartphones and social media) might mitigate or exacerbate the effects of social isolation.

Before beginning her Ph.D. at Cambridge, Emily was lab manager and research associate in the Brain and Body Lab in the Psychology Department at UCLA which investigated how early experiences influence the brain and body - including the gut microbiome. In 2019, Emily graduated from UCLA with a Master’s Degree in Social Science where she completed a project examining the interaction between early and current life stress on adolescent mental health. Before UCLA, Emily completed a postbaccalaureate program in psychology at Columbia University, a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications and Media from the City University of New York, and an Associate's Degree in Applied Science from the Fashion Institute of Technology in Advertising and Marketing Communications. In addition to her studies, Emily has also worked as a journalist and held several positions among major news outlets.

Emily is passionate about open science and science communication, and hopes to disseminate research findings to a wide audience, including young people - particularly young women and girls - who might be interested in STEM careers.

Originally, Emily is from the U.S. and grew up in a small town in Georgia before moving to New York City where she lived for 10 years and worked as a fashion model. After New York, she moved to Los Angeles for two years before settling in Cambridge, U.K. to pursue a Ph.D. In her spare time Emily loves to workout, travel, try not to kill her houseplants, and explore the pubs and restaurants around Cambridge. She has a five year old rat terrier named Maggy - who currently resides in Florida with her mother - whom Emily is trying to import as soon as possible.