aanya bhalla’s interactive resume
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About Me
About Me
I am a third-year undergraduate student at the University of Texas at Austin. As a BS Honors Chemistry student, I am interested in pharmaceutics and drug delivery. I work as a research assistant in Dr. Feng Zhang’s lab in the College of Pharmacy.
Undergraduate Experience
Undergraduate Experience
Research at Dr. Zhang’s Lab
I’ve been working at Dr. Zhang’s lab as a Research Assistant for nearly 2 years. In that time, I have had the opportunity to work on 2 major projects.
The second project focused on the polymer formulation of PLGA-based slow-release biodegradable vorconazole implant. A long-acting method of delivery could improve the treatment efficacy and safety of the drug. We developed two formulations, with the target to improve the total exposure and the time above minimal inhibitory concentration (T>MIC).
We tested various polymer blends involving PVP and PEG additives, ultimately yielding two promising formulations with distinct merits. The PEG formulation displayed 1st order release, offering more favorable higher sustained exposure over time. The PVP formulation displayed 0th order release, offering sustained T>MIC and longer prolonged release.
I am excited to be presenting my research at the AAPS Pharmsci 360 Conference in 2024 with Coleman Johnson.
The first project was the determination of a dissolution-based IVIVC of dexamethasone intravitreal implants in rabbits. Through this amazing project with the FDA, I contributed to the design and execution of an in-vivo drug release study with 40 rabbits.
Using hot-melt extrusion, we made 2 formulations of implants, which were tested in both PBS and Saline in-vitro. We found that our saline method was, in fact, a good biopredictive model in the rabbit vitreous, with an R square value of 0.96.
High School Experience
High School Experience
Drug Discovery Research.
Recognition
Nominated for Publication
Invited to American Chemical Society Conference to present works
Feedback on my work and personal performance from Professor Nicole Snyder
“Aanya truly was a stellar scholar.”
Figures produced and featured in my paper
Dhruv's Day, the interactive English-learning storybook Aanya wrote.
Book distributions in our first Rajamundhry-based school with the help of Dr. Vamsi.
Some of the wonderful people who have helped integrate Dhruv's Day into curricula, including, Dr. Anita, and headmistresses.
Kids after receiving books in our first Hyderabad-based school.
Excited about reading Dhruv's day in the first Krithikala Trust school that integrated the book into the English curriculum for 2nd to 5th graders.
Aanya distributing books in Hyderabad.
A few pages from Aanya's book to provide context.
Storybook page example.
Followup photo-glossary page example.
Aanya running the first workshop training teachers to teach English using the book.
Enjoying Dhruv's Day
First school we distributed to.
Kids reading Dhruv's Day at the Gurdwara (Sikh place of worship).
Distributions in Hyderabadi villages.
Distributions!
Aanya with a few of the Krithikala Trust teachers in a meeting about updating language style in the book.
Distributions!
Distributions!
Distributions!
Distributions!
Distributions!
Distributions!
Distributions!
Back and forth with native Telugu speakers to edit the language.
COURSES
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Columbia Pre-College Program Explorations in Molecular Biology and Genetics
At Columbia, I took a genetics pre-college course that covered basic virology and immunology, molecular biology techniques like Southern and Northern blots, and modern biology applications that involve cancer, heart disease, viral infections, and gene therapy. I completed 9 assignments that included data analysis, 3 tests, and a final exam. This course helped enable me to develop my interest in genomics.
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Cornell Course BIOEE1781 Introduction to Evolution and Diversity
Completed a 4 credit course at Cornell University on evolutionary diversification and the experimental and synthetic approaches to analyzing it. Participated in virual group work and lead my group for two weeks. Learned about studying at a college-level and how to keep up with the difficult material.
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PennX Hollywood: History, Industry, Art
My favorite English movies include Young Frankenstein, The Philadelphia Story, The Maltese Falcon, and The Postman Always Rings Twice.
When the pandemic started, schools had shut down for a few weeks and we couldn’t do any normal activities. In this time, along with yoga and watching Netflix, I explored my hobby, classic American film, in a more technical sense. Taking the EdX class, ‘Hollywood: History, Industry, Art’ by PennX, was a fun way to understand how these movies became what they are.
Some of my favorite topics were Piracy and Copyright, specifically the Ben-Hur Case, the Production Code, Political Influence, and The Blacklist.
WORK
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Freelance Portfolio Management, 2020
Before the pandemic started, I started working as a freelancer for a high-net-worth individual investor. I conducted market research and financial analysis for equity stocks in clothing retail and healthcare.
I evaluated risk-reward ratios, conducted company and section valuation analysis, and mapped quarterly report data to changes in management.
The client invested in one of the stocks I recommended with a 3.5x return (bought at $27.02, sold at $94.17). Before this point, I had only invested a limited amount of my own money in the American stock market. This experience helped build confidence in navigating something fairly unpredictable on my own.
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Conçu Bakery, Winter 2019-20
Conçu is an award-winning French bakery located in Hyderabad, India. There, I completed a 40-day internship, working primarily pastry chef, but also learning to barista and waitress. I love to cook, and, at the time, I wanted to make a career of it as a restaurant owner-entrepreneur. While this internship taught me a lot about work ethic, it also taught me that I do not want to own a restaurant — which I think is the value of exploring different industries early on.
An important aspect of my internship was observing management, learning about the supply chain, and understanding basic business structures. Working 10 hours, 6 days a week, I learned pure hard work while getting to observe the day-to-day management and customer service. As it was a hectic and demanding job, I developed a great work ethic yet found a work-life balance.
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Rosa’s Cafe, Winter 2020-21
Rosas is a fast-food Mexican restaurant, where I worked as a General Cashier in winter 2020-21. I was manning the register, drive-thru, and table-service.
Over time, I earned a raise due to good performance and was trusted with higher-level jobs like shipment supervision, inventory management.
I enjoyed working in Texas, US, after having had an experience working in India. Working in two similar food-related jobs, I learned a lot about how day-to-day customs can influence the success of a business. I learned how to navigate different work environments, adapting to the culture while maintaining my personal work ethic.