As I contemplated pursuing a PhD in cell biology, I looked back at my own undergraduate experience and decided that scientists in minority groups needed a more supportive pathway. With the help of associate deans and advisers at Carnegie Mellon University, I set up COMPASS (Coaching Minority Progress and Academic Success in Science), a mentoring programme led by older students that helps incoming minority students. That programme now has 15 members. Its genesis was rooted in my own struggles adjusting to a rigorous academic atmosphere.

During my first year as an undergraduate, I often felt overwhelmed and unsure about my abilities as a student. I was lucky to meet Malika Jeffries-EL, an African-American postdoc in chemistry, whose encouragement convinced me that my hard work would pay off. Some struggling, she said, was natural. She and I had much in common. She too had been the only black student in a science class. She knew the pressure to avoid failure. Communicating with a woman of colour who had earned an advanced science degree helped me see a path to success.

My work improved in my second year. My research project, analysing the interactions of proteins involved in ribosome assembly, was an eye-opening experience. I enjoyed the various biochemical and genetic techniques used to study cellular mechanisms; I was stimulated by the questions that arose from analysing data; and I became interested in solving biological problems and addressing deeper questions at the PhD level. This year I was fortunate to be awarded a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Gilliam Fellowship for Advanced Study, which will fund the entirety of my graduate-school experience at the school of my choosing. I hope one day to become a cell-biology professor.

My experience of mentoring inspired me to start COMPASS, which enables incoming minority students to network with current students, key advisers and faculty members. Students are contacted the summer before their first year and invited to participate. The programme helps me share my insights in a supportive network.

This autumn, I plan to study regulation of the cell cycle at Stanford University. I will continue to serve as a mentor and adviser to COMPASS, hoping to help young minority scientists develop their own paths to success.