Currently a lab technician for Northeastern’s Marine Science Center, Sophia Ly is heading to Washington, D.C., to work on marine policy issues as the winner of a Sea Grant Knauss fellowship sponsored by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Ly, who obtained a master’s degree in environmental science and policy from Northeastern in December, will spend a year working for a federal agency, starting in February.
“It could be NOAA. It could be the EPA. I could be working for the Biden administration staff,” Ly says, adding that she won’t have an assignment until after placement interviews take place in October.
The Newton, Massachusetts, resident says she is excited about pursuing her career goal of making marine environmental science issues accessible to the public.
“As a first generation Asian American, there aren’t too many role models in the field, at least in my experience,” Ly says.
“I don’t have much exposure to marine science and environmental policy within my own community. This fellowship will allow me to explore all the opportunities out there. I can really hone in on what I like to do.”
Ly is the latest in a string of Northeastern graduate students who have received the fellowship named after former NOAA Administrator John A. Knauss.
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Photo by Matthew Modoono/Northeastern University.