“Branding Excellence” is a series highlighting students and faculty who perform at a high level of professionalism, are forward-thinking individuals, and always have the willingness to learn more. The series name is derived from the saying “Pursuing Excellence” which means setting ambitious goals and working tirelessly to achieve them, consistently performing at your best, bettering yourself and those around you, and staying resilient in the face of challenges. The Department of Animal & Food Sciences is dedicated to excellence in every aspect of its faculty, staff and students. The department wants to wear the “brand” of success as they address today’s challenges and create a better future for our world.
It takes a big dream and a lot of plane fuel to get to Lubbock, Texas, from Assam, India, but Rituparna Sonowal, a doctoral candidate, is willing to sacrifice leaving her home country to make her big dream a reality.
Packing up her belongings and moving halfway across the world, not knowing when she will be back, was difficult for Sonowal. However, knowing she gets to attend a school that gives her all the resources she needs to pursue her dream makes it a little easier.
“It’s hard but it will be worth it,” Sonowal said. “The kind of work that I’m doing, I know it’s not possible there (India), and that’s what keeps me motivated to be here.”
As a doctoral candidate, Sonowal contributes to many research studies as a student research assistant alongside many professors in the Department of Animal & Food Science. Recently completing a research paper called “The influence of scented toy enrichment on owned dog activity levels in a household setting” with professors Nathaniel Hall and Anastasia Stellato, Sonowal's research interests are also in behavior and welfare of dogs.
“Right now I am researching at least five hours a day, and I have a target of 40 dogs a month that I need to study,” Sonowal said. “By the end of the project, our goal is 150 dogs. I have undergrads who are helping me as well so we are all getting hands-on experience.”
Although each research project goal varies, Sonowal said the hands-on research experience is what keeps her interested in the topic.
“As a research assistant I'm always learning new skills like how to manually build a scale to record water consumption of a dog, and how to work with different softwares to record the data,” Sonowal said.
With a supportive family, department, and university behind her, Sonowal said that the Department of Animal & Food Science, as well as Texas Tech International Affairs, have been a great community and support group for her during her time at Texas Tech.
As Sonowal prepares for her candidacy exam in February, she is confident the professors within the department, as well as the international resources have prepared her well even though she is far away from her family.
“The kind of resources and support the school provides makes it very easy for me while I’m here,” Sonowal said.
What does Branding Excellence mean to you?: “By contributing to science and research, I can contribute to the Department of Animal & Food Science as well,” Sonowal said. “The hours and hours of research and classes I'm contributing to, I'm hoping it will make a change.”