Originally from Jacksonville Florida, PMB alumnus Nicholas Moravick graduated from NC State in 2019 with a Bachelor of Science in Plant Biology. Now he works at Novo Nordisk Pharmaceuticals doing column chromatography. We reached out to Nicholas to find out about his experiences.
Can you tell us a little about your journey to get your degree?
“I started my degree in 2007. After losing eligibility for poor grades, I took time to find my passions and interests. Upon arriving back at NCSU in 2015, I was more prepared to accomplish my goal of degree completion. In 2016, my first child was born but I had to withdraw from the university after he was diagnosed with a rare cancer that ultimately took his life. After taking some time, I re-enrolled and was accepted into PMB where I was fortunate to have the privilege of conducting research with Dr. Deyu Xie.”
How was your research experience with Dr. Xie ?
“This experience and mentorship will forever be a defining moment in my life. Deyu helped facilitate a passion for exploring the unknown as it relates to medicinal plants. He also helped teach a valuable lesson on failure, that it should always teach you something.”
What did you do after graduating NCSU?
“After graduation, I took a job at a nursery. Then the pandemic hit, and I landed a job in pharma [at Novo Nordisk Pharmaceuticals]. Doing drug purification for a new GLP-1 drug is rewarding, challenging and fast paced. The scale of production is inspiring.”
What do you enjoy most about your career?
“I love the scale of our facility! Going from doing column chromatography in the lab at NC State to a full production facility is crazy to compare. The capabilities of automated machinery at this level are astonishing.”
What do you consider your biggest accomplishment in your career?
“To be determined!”
What do you do when you’re not in the lab/at work?
“When I am not at work, I enjoy learning about medicinal plants, gardening and have hopes of launching my own brand of supplement(s) in the future, mostly catering to e- sports markets! I’m an old school halo player and video game junkie.”
What do you miss most about NCSU?
“Dr. Xie lab work and work mates. The lessons learned from all the faculty, mentors and life experiences helped shape my trajectory. I am forever thankful for NCSU and PMB.”
Do you have any advice for current PMB students?
“My advice to students would be to realize that everyone has a story. Get to know people, their why’s and what motivates them. Who knows what they will share and how you can benefit each other! Make friends and mentors, this time passes quickly!”
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