Lab Coat Ceremony marks significant milestone for Ph.D. candidates
Nearly 80 UTSW Graduate School students celebrated at inaugural event
Being pregnant and then having a baby while pursuing a doctorate in clinical psychology presented extra challenges for Maya Hubbard, M.Div. – late nights, sick days, sleep loss, and daycare responsibilities, just to name a few.
But after receiving her lab coat at UT Southwestern’s inaugural Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences’ Lab Coat Ceremony, which honored students’ achievement of an educational milestone, “it was all worth it,” she said.
On Oct. 5, Mrs. Hubbard was among 78 Ph.D. candidates who participated in the ceremony in the Tom and Lula Gooch Auditorium, where faculty members and mentors presented them with coats provided by the Office of Student Life.
Family, friends, and colleagues gathered to celebrate their achievements, which included passing coursework and moving into the dissertation phases of their programs, said Andrew Zinn, M.D., Ph.D., Dean of the Graduate School. After passing qualifying exams, students spend two to five years focused on their dissertation research.
“Unlike a white coat ceremony that marks the beginning of professional training for medical students, this event recognizes a significant milestone already earned,” Dr. Zinn said. “Each of the students has successfully completed the rigorous coursework and examinations required by their program and has advanced to doctoral candidacy.”
The lab coats symbolize the responsibility students have as creators of new knowledge, he added.
“It represents a commitment to intellectual rigor, scientific integrity, and the pursuit of truth,” Dr. Zinn said. “It is a reminder that scientific discovery depends not only on creativity and ambition, but also on honesty, humility, and perseverance.”
Kaylee Lankford, a Ph.D. candidate in biochemistry, couldn’t agree more.
“There are not many opportunities where you can step back and see how far you have come,” she said. “This ceremony was a way to recognize a really big milestone.”
Her parents, grandmother, sister, and fiancé attended and cheered her on.
“She’s the first family member to get a Ph.D.,” said Julie Thompson, Ms. Lankford’s mother. “Today has been extremely meaningful.”
A.J. Jain, a Ph.D. candidate in biomedical engineering, said the event “symbolized the next chapter in scientific discovery.”
Zachary Brooks, M.S.W., a Ph.D. candidate in clinical psychology, acknowledged the important role that family support played.
“Our families keep us going,” he said. “I don’t think people realize how hard it is for them, too.”
Keynote speaker Kim Orth, Ph.D., Professor of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, encouraged the doctoral candidates to stay curious despite the challenges that lie ahead.
“Don’t forget to eat, sleep, exercise, and take time to keep in touch with those who care about you,” Dr. Orth said.
After the keynote address, Joan Conaway, Ph.D., Vice Provost and Dean of Basic Research, led the group as they repeated the Scientist’s Oath. Each doctoral candidate then marched onto the stage to be “coated.”
The reception that followed was filled with smiles, tears, and big hugs.
Eman Nabulsi, M.S., a Ph.D. candidate in clinical psychology, reflected on her educational journey.
“Going through it now feels like I am fulfilling an academic dream,” said Mrs. Nabulsi, who also gave birth to a child during graduate school. “Then becoming a mom transformed me. I feel an even greater responsibility to show my daughter what all I can do and what she can one day do – and more.”
Endowed Titles
Dr. Conaway holds the Cecil H. Green Distinguished Chair in Cellular and Molecular Biology.
Dr. Orth holds the Earl A. Forsythe Chair in Biomedical Science and is a W.W. Caruth, Jr. Scholar in Biomedical Research.
Dr. Zinn holds the Henry Ross Perot Distinguished Professorship in Biomedical Science and the Rolf Haberecht and Ute Schwarz Haberecht Deanship of the UT Southwestern Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences.