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By: Tiffany Whitfield

Â鶹¹ú²úAV alumna, Maria Piarulli, Ph.D. is assistant professor of physics in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis. Also, she is recipient of a U.S. Department of Energy . Her trek from Europe to the United States involved blending two different cultures and two different styles of learning, which would ultimately have a direct impact on her professional choices.

Piarulli's journey started in Pisa, Italy where she was working on her undergraduate degree in physics at the University of Pisa, one of the oldest universities in Europe. "That year, there was a professor from Â鶹¹ú²úAV who was doing an exchange program at the University of Pisa," said Piarulli. She took Â鶹¹ú²úAV Physics professor & eminent scholar Rocco Schiavilla's class because she was interested in nuclear physics. Her undergraduate advisor, Professor Laura E. Marcucci, happened to also be a former Â鶹¹ú²úAV Ph.D. student of Schiavilla. Little did Piarulli know this connection to the United States was only the beginning of an interesting journey in science.

"Maria took my class and did outstandingly in the final oral exam," said Rocco Schiavilla. "As a matter of fact, I suggested to my colleague, Professor Laura Marcucci, that she should "attract" Maria into the nuclear theory group there for a Master thesis, and then "send her" to us (Â鶹¹ú²úAV) for Ph.D. in nuclear theory."

Piarulli completed her Bachelor of Science and Master of Science in physics at the University of Pisa. As she was nearing the end of her master's degree the chance to continue her studies at Â鶹¹ú²úAV presented itself. "I wasn't planning to come to Â鶹¹ú²úAV, but I saw an opportunity to do more research in physics with Schiavilla," said Piarulli. Once she was done with her Master of Science she decided to come to Â鶹¹ú²úAV.

Arriving in America was a complete culture shock for Piarulli because this was her first time in the States. "The first year was tough, my English was very poor, and everything was different," said Piarulli. "Coming from Europe we have the perception of the U.S. that is a little bit distorted by the movies and the television shows." There was an adjustment period for her. For instance, in Europe they walk everywhere without having to plan, but in the States many citizens drive vehicles to get where they need to go and typically must plan ahead. She was fortunate to live with an American roommates and was able to get more immersed into the culture.

After nearly two years of being in the United States, Piarulli finally felt acclimated. "I felt like Â鶹¹ú²úAV admitted me to the Physics Ph.D. program, invested time and resources in me and I felt the pressure to succeed and do all of the work," said Piarulli. "There were so many resources I was given as an international student, and I am very grateful for the opportunities."

Piarulli credits many people for helping her at Â鶹¹ú²úAV. "Gail Dodge and Lepsha Vuskovic (eminent professor) and all of the faculty in the Department of Physics were very helpful," said Piarulli. They provided her with a laptop and all the support that she didn't receive in Italy. "All of the administration was great because dealing with international students was not easy. My experience was very positive and Physics is a very strong department," said Piarulli.

"In addition to being an excellent student, Maria was very active in the Women in Physics dinners that we held twice per semester," said Gail Dodge, dean of the College of Sciences. "She was an important part of that community, mentoring other women, assisting younger graduate students and undergraduates, and generally adding to the supportive environment in physics. We are very proud of her success!"

With Schiavilla as her advisor, she worked on a project to develop nuclear models to study nuclear systems. Schiavilla has a dual position. He is a researcher at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Lab (Jefferson Lab) and is a professor and eminent scholar at Â鶹¹ú²úAV's Department of Physics. Working with Schiavilla allowed her to do research at Jefferson Lab. "I went to Jefferson Lab twice a week and it was nice to be involved to be in both the Â鶹¹ú²úAV and national research environments," said Piarulli. "The type of science that they do is impressive and there are many people linked to Jefferson Lab."

Schiavilla was critical to her success. "He helped me a lot and he's a well-known physicist outside of the U.S.," said Piarulli. "It was great to be part of his group and to work alongside him."

"She has done wonderful things at Â鶹¹ú²úAV, flourishing into a first-rate young researcher in academia," said Schiavilla.

Piarulli received her Ph.D. after five and a half years at Â鶹¹ú²úAV and immediately she worked as a postdoctoral research associate at Argonne National Lab in Chicago, Illinois. After working at Argonne for three years she was hired as a tenure track assistant professor at the Washington University in St. Louis.

After working at the Argonne National Lab for three years, she got a tenure track position at the Washington University in St. Louis.

"My field of expertise is theoretical Nuclear Physics," said Piarulli. "The main idea is to study nuclear systems such as atomic nuclei and infinite matter and to develop theoretical and computational methods that allow us to study these systems."

As the recipient of a U.S. Department of Energy's Early Career Research grant, she was relieved. "It was a relief because it proves to the department that my research matters and people are interested in what I do and it is very competitive," said Piarulli.

As a professor she tries to combine her two learning styles and apply them to her current students. In the U.S., and now as a teacher, she believes all the focus is on the student. "It's hard for a student to fail in America, they have homework every week and get feedback," said Piarulli. "In Italy you're just a number and it's up to you, the way you study, you go to classes; you don't have homework every week and there isn't anyone telling you what to do." She believes there are pros and cons to both learning styles. "In Europe, you become a little more independent, and you must organize your day and organize your study, but in America student progress is monitored and that is helpful," said Piarulli.

Her students at Washington University in St. Louis consider her to be tough. "I have this experience of both countries, and I try to merge them," said Piarulli. "On one side I want them to be more independent and then on the other end I challenge my students but will encourage them too."

Currently, she is supervising one Ph.D. student and co-supervising one postdoctoral researcher and another student in physics. She knows the road ahead for them may be challenging, but she makes sure she is a resource for her students.

She credits Â鶹¹ú²úAV to her success. "I would strongly recommend Â鶹¹ú²úAV to anyone; it's a positive environment, very supportive of students and you have a lot of resources," said Piarulli. "I loved being so close to the beach and living on the coast too."