May 5, 2026
Outstanding grad: Tiasha Nandi excels in Ferris State’s Doctor of Pharmacy program, credits community for success
Tiasha Nandi admits that her collegiate journey hasn’t always been linear, but the Ferris State University student days away from completing her Doctorate of Pharmacy didn’t shy away from a challenging career field.
Nandi has already started the process of moving to Chicago to continue her medical journey as a Clinical Operations Fellow in Oncology through AbbVie/St. John's University all while wrapping up her time in Big Rapids.
Aspiring to work in competitive field comes with its own set of challenges, but Nandi has never doubted that her decision to study at Ferris State will allow her to be successful as a professional, regardless of how many curveballs life threw at her.
“During my final year of pharmacy school, I was navigating the stressful and unfamiliar process of pursuing a postgraduate fellowship. It was a pivotal and high-pressure time, and what stood out most was the unwavering support I received from the faculty, even the dean Stephen Durst,” Nandi said.
She was thankful for her professors guiding her through the fellowship process of how to be an exceptional interviewee and how they wrote letters of recommendation to help her standout among many candidates. With their support and encouragement, Nandi noted that it reaffirmed she was making the right choice, and that she has a debt of gratitude for her community.
Nandi made a point that the support from Dr. Minji Sohn and Dr. Benjamin Pontefract, both Ferris State associate professors, was tenfold. She believes the pair – who also served as her research professors - are truly vested in student development in and out of the classroom.
Although Nandi remains modest about how her community is what got her to the finish line, she deserves the credit for the groundwork.
That includes years of becoming well-versed in project development, scientific communication, and critical thinking. She was fortunate to apply those skills through multiple cross-country trips to pharmacy conferences, while also having opportunities to present research conducted by her and classmates.
“Leadership opportunities through student organizations also helped me strengthen my communication, collaboration, and problem-solving skills. I was able to speak on these unique experiences during my interviews that helped me land a fellowship,” Nandi added.
Nandi's success in the classroom, labs, and pharmacy rotations were also paired with her visits to conventions across the nation, including presenting at Infectious Disease Week in L.A.
Her eagerness to continue learning likely played a significant part in helping her get through her final stretch of pharmacy rotations, which are hands-on clinical training for PharmD students that are supervised by preceptor pharmacists to bridge classroom learning with patient care. Although she was fortunate to have her final rotations be off blocks that gave her more schedule flexibility, she had to prepare to secure a fellowship; one of the most competitive aspects of her degree program.
“The fellowship application process, which was between October and December, was one of the most intense and demanding periods of pharmacy school for me,” she said. “I was completing full time clinical rotations while navigating applying to over 20 places with over 30 interviews. I truly could not have done this without the mentorship and support of our professors, my family and my pharmacy friends and peers.”
While her community helped her navigate what she called one of the most stressful moments in her life, it also reaffirmed that Ferris State was the university for her.
Without it, she wouldn’t have the lifelong and meaningful friendships she created along the way. Nandi also cherishes the opportunities like building a research abstract and poster from the ground up – with help from professors at CHARM – which she and classmates presented at Infectious Disease Week in Los Angeles, California.
Most of all, she’s grateful that Ferris State helped her secure a competitive postgraduate fellowship at AbbVie.
“AbbVie worked out in a way that feels aligned. The team has already shown how supportive and invested they are, the company is a leader in the pharmaceutical industry, oncology is a therapeutic area I was most interested in, and the location in the Chicago area is close enough to home since I’m originally from the Metro Detroit area,” Nandi said.
She hopes that in just a few short years, she’ll be able to give back through mentoring students, while eventually working as an oncology professional in Metro Detroit.
Looking back on where she started, Nandi shared a few words of encouragement for fellow Bulldogs that helped her get to the graduation finish line.
“Do not be afraid to dream big, ask for help, and take advantage of every opportunity that comes your way. Some of the most meaningful growth happens when you step outside of your comfort zone and challenge yourself. … Work hard, stay open to learning, be fearless, trust your support system and the process. The opportunities and connections you build here can shape your future in ways you may not even realize yet.”