What are your current responsibilities?

I serve as both the Project Manager and Project Scientist of the U.S. Rosetta Project, the NASA contribution to the International Rosetta Mission, and ESA mission with NASA participation.  (ESA is the European Space Agency).

Please describe a "typical" workday?

Almost no day turns out the way I expect.   We are always handling problems that crop up all at once.  The plans that I make, and the schedule I try to establish almost always gets put aside for more urgent things.  For example, I was expecting a quite end-of-week last week in which to do some writing on a document to start the new year, and we were notified that the Ariane 5 rocket, similar to one on which Rosetta was planning to launch in 30 days had blown up.  Suddenly my day was taken over by assessments about what this meant for our scheduled launch.  The time I require in order to think and get 'real' work done is relegated to weekends and/or weeknights.

What experiences prepared you for your current position?

I was a science representative on the Galileo Mission to Jupiter.  I learned to represent the interests of the investigators on a big mission.  But nothing prepared me for the position of Project Manager.  It is totally out of my experience base, and represents a real stretch for me.

What skills are important to develop or have in your field?

Basic technical skills are a given, however on top of that I found that I benefited from having robust interpersonal skills, working with a team, etc.  These are the skills I call upon both as Project Manager and as Project Scientist, but more as Project Manager.  The challenges range from conducting an effective staff meeting to understanding the politics of HQ's.  The skills were developed outside of the academic environment.  I feel that I developed leadership skills in junior high and high school by being in student government, and other clubs and extracurricular activities like the orchestra.  I never thought those activities would fold into my career skills.

To what professional organizations do you belong?

I belong to the American Geophysical Union

How can students make the most of their experiences as undergraduates? As graduate students?
What advice can you offer on choosing a major? A career?

I think students should choose based upon what they love.  There is nothing like getting up in the morning and going to a job that you love.  It  is also a good idea to try and create flexibility in your life by having more than one thing that you do.  For example knowing computers and engineering so that you can go either way depending upon the job market.

What is your greatest achievement or your greatest success at this point in your life?

I thought I would be nearing retirement - at the apex of my career before becoming Project Scientist.  It is a real surprise to find myself doing the greatest achievement with so much time left in my career.  That's pretty good.

How have you achieved balance in your career and family life?

This is the area of my greatest failure and deepest regret.  I have no family life, and find the balance a difficult one to achieve.

What are your long-term goals?

I'd like to 'get a life', a real family life.  And I may want to leave the science field altogether and become a writer.  That would be cool.