Meet Abhidnya Patharkar | Researcher, Dancer & AOL Volunteer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Abhidnya Patharkar and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Abhidnya, looking back, what do you think was the most difficult decision you’ve had to make?
The most difficult decision I ever had to make was deciding whether or not to enroll for the PhD program and that too in the domain which is completely different than my previous domain.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I am pursuing my Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from Arizona State University. I am working on developing machine learning models for early sepsis detection. I am very excited about this particular project since it gives me an opportunity to use my skills and knowledge to save people from death by making sepsis predictions much earlier which gives more time for the doctors to start patient treatment. I pursued my undergraduate and graduate degrees in an entirely different field than my current field. It was extremely difficult in the beginning to do my Ph.D. I had to grab the fundamentals pretty quickly. However, I was able to do it because of the right guidance from my professors, colleagues, and family members. Also, I shall give credit to my perseverance and hard work.
The lesson that I have learned is to believe in myself and my abilities. We can start with baby steps to reach the goal.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I would take them to Antelope Canyon, Grand Canyon, and Sedona. They are the 3 most interesting places.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are many who deserve the shoutout but my husband deserves credit especially for supporting me during very difficult times in my PhD program.

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/apathark/