A conversation between the Graduate Biomedical Engineering Society and Laura Dunphy, a third year PhD student in Jason Papin's Lab. A: I grew up in Loudoun County, Virginia. (Sorry, I'm one of the NOVA kids...) A: I graduated in 2015 from MIT, where I studied Biological Engineering. "In addition to being collaborative and helpful in lab, the BMEs are good friends outside of the context of research, and that makes work feel a lot less like work." A: Hmmm... since I'm fairly confident "professional food taster" isn't a real thing, I'd either be a (probably unsuccessful) author, since I briefly considered studying literature in undergrad, or a personal trainer, because I would get paid to exercise and hopefully have a positive impact on someone's life. A: My favorite thing about UVA is definitely the people. Our department is full of very smart, very driven people who also prioritize having a healthy, happy life outside of the university. In addition to being collaborative and helpful in lab, the BMEs are good friends outside of the context of research, and that makes work feel a lot less like work. Also, everyone here is doing VERY cool science. A: My work in the Price lab centers on using ultrasound to deliver therapeutic genes that target epigenetic regulators of arteriogenesis and angiogenesis in order to promote reperfusion of ischemic tissue in the context of peripheral arterial disease. I received an NIH-funded training grant through the Robert M. Berne Cardiovascular Research Center to pursue my research.