GMS Alumni Spotlight: Sophia Nosek ’25
Sophia Nosek is a 2025 graduate of the Master of Science in Clinical Research program at Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine. Sophia currently works as the Research Program Manager for the post-mortem UNITE Brain Bank Study at the BU Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) Center, where she also worked full-time as she pursued her degree at Graduate Medical Sciences. Her research interest lies in the different modifying factors that might play a role in CTE, including age of first exposure to football. Learn more about Sophia’s journey at BU and the CTE Center below!
Tell me a bit about your journey to Boston. What brought you to Boston University?
I’m originally from Central Massachusetts and went to UMass Amherst for undergrad. I started in biology and then quickly switched to a kinesiology major. I thought I might want to pursue medicine at first, then shifted toward the physician assistant route. I began working as a patient care technician and nursing assistant in nursing homes and then in a dialysis unit.
While working toward that goal, I had a junior-year course that required a literature review. I always had an interest in concussion/repetitive head impact research, [traumatic brain injury] research, football, and contact sports, so when I could choose an independent project, I gravitated toward that topic. I spent the semester writing a comprehensive literature review on CTE and repetitive head impacts and realized I had a strong passion for that research. So, I joined a lab at UMass that focused on cortical activity in contact sport athletes versus non-contact sport athletes. I think it was here that I realized I should shift gears and go into a career of clinical research.
In the summer of 2022, I did an internship at UMass Chan Medical School in the Cancer Research Office and learned all the behind-the-scenes work that goes into clinical research. I really liked it, but I knew that I still wanted to specifically do CTE research. Boston University is the leading place for that work, and because I’m from Massachusetts it felt like a natural fit. So, that fall of 2022 I started messaging everyone at the CTE Center on LinkedIn. When my final semester at UMass started, I started hearing from the CTE Center that they might have a job opening. I also looked into master’s programs and stumbled upon the MS in Clinical Research program.
Everything lined up. I realized that I could work at the CTE Center full-time and pursue my master’s part-time with night classes. I started as a research assistant in July 2023, and then within that same year, I was promoted to Research Program Manager for the UNITE Brain Bank study. I still hold that position, and I completed my master’s this past May.
Can you tell me about some of the work you have done at the CTE Center and within your program?
The work often overlapped between my master’s program and in my role at the CTE Center, because much of the research I do on a day-to-day basis also qualified and counted towards my capstone project. I primarily work on the UNITE Brain Bank study, which is a post-mortem study. I’m on the clinical team, so that means that my research participants are brain donors and their families. I’m also a brain donation coordinator, which means I handle a lot of logistics regarding each brain donation at or near the time of death, making sure we get the brains to our brain bank. I keep frequent communications with the family members of those brain donors to get as much information on their loved one as we can. That could be health history, symptom history, medications, substance use, family history, etc., so we can try to better understand the different things that people go through after being exposed to repetitive head impacts or traumatic brain injuries.
That is the overarching project, and then my specific interest lies in the different modifying factors that might play a role in CTE. I looked into age of first exposure (AFE) to football, and that’s what I studied for my capstone project within the MSCR program. I am finishing up that project now with the CTE Center. The project looks at how early someone starts playing football, and whether or not that impacts their symptoms as it relates to any neurodegenerative diseases that they might have after playing football.
How did your work in the program fit into your larger goals in your field?
I think a lot of my interest lies in the actual operations and management of clinical research and clinical trials. I love organizing meetings and workflows, effectively communicating with my colleagues, and making sure that things are handled smoothly and efficiently.
I think that this job is great for me, because every aspect of the research is important, and attention to detail is really important. Communication is the biggest priority between the families and medical examiners, people on my team, and people from other institutions. I think it’s just taught me a lot about how much I actually like the management aspect of the role, and where I can take that from here. I think the MSCR program helped me with management skills as well. I took multiple courses on leadership and management and managing clinical trials. That strengthened my interest in how I can move forward, either in an academic setting or in a private sector industry setting later on.
What were some of your favorite memories during your time at BU?
I always say my favorite part about the master’s program and my job are just the people that I get to meet. Hearing about everyone’s different experiences, whether they’re faculty or staff or fellow students, it’s just really interesting to learn where people have come from, where they’re going, and what they’re interested in. I can’t even think of a specific event, other than just making connections with people around me, and having that turn into a friendship outside of work, or outside of class, or commuting home together. These really interesting people have become great friends.
Are there any mentors who helped you with getting to this point?
As far as within the master’s program, Dr. Janice Weinberg and Stacey Hess Pino have been amazing. They were my first professors and instructors in one of my first courses there. Throughout my entire time, they were always there to answer questions. Dr. Weinberg was one of my mentors on my capstone, and I think they were just always there to support me. I was also their intern, so we had kind of a professional bond outside of class as well. Within my work and my capstone project, Dr. Michael Alosco, Dr. Jesse Mez, Dr. Ann McKee, and Dr. Dan Daneshvar have all just been instrumental in making sure that I have the tools to succeed and can contribute to as many projects as possible.
What advice would you give to a GMS student following a similar path?
I would say to just reach out to as many people as possible and connect with people, whether that’s in your classes, at work, on LinkedIn, from websites, email, etc. Regardless of what your interests are, I feel like it’s so important to just learn what other people’s paths have been, because you never know. There might be something that really stands out to you, or that might be a connection that can help you down the road. I feel like learning about other people’s experiences has helped shaped how I’ve gotten to this point today.
What do you like to do around Boston for fun?
I am kind of a foodie. I love trying new restaurants, and Boston is a great place to do that. I live in the North End, so I’m always trying new Italian food. I also love the food in the South End. I love getting coffee, regardless of how expensive it is. I love trying new cafes, and mostly just going for walks, going for runs, and being with my friends.
Sophia’s work with the CTE Center was also featured in an October 2024 article from The Brink.