While she was writing her thesis to become a doctor in chemistry, Maëva Coste, originally from Saint-André-de-Roquepertuis, began to think about what was next. Between two experiments in her laboratory in Montpellier, she applied, without really believing it, for a post-doctorate in New York. Today, it is from her new laboratory in New York that she looks back on her journey.
After several interviews, she finally obtained a two-year position to join a research team at the City University of New York. “I wanted to live an international adventure and improve my English… Because in laboratories, it’s the preferred language”, she explains. It was also an opportunity for her to develop new skills and move towards new fields of application after writing a thesis on chemistry in health. “Here, I work more on the chemistry of materials, especially for sustainable development energies. It’s a way for me to have more job opportunities.”
Because if the young 30-year-old doctor is very happy in the United States, her goal is to return to work in France and perhaps even in the territory where she grew up. “I’ve never lived far from the south of France so it was a big change to come here, especially in the middle of winter, says Maëva. The biggest change is the vastness of the city. But there always has new things to do. It’s very rich culturally and musically.”
Important point for the latter: to be able to quickly find oneself in nature. It is quite naturally that she chose to live next to the largest park in the city, Central Park. “I go there several times a week. It’s so big that you can’t hear the noise of the cars. It’s one of my favorite places in town. It’s cliché but it’s really what that makes New York beautiful.”
And if the young woman needed to be reassured when she arrived by meeting mainly French people, the course is over. “In the laboratory, we work with people of all nationalities. I also joined various associations to meet people and I’m starting to have a good group.” What make him want, perhaps, to stay a year or two more…
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