Anthony Bogetti

How did you get started in your career field?:

Though I am now a professor of chemistry, I did not always like chemistry. I began college as a biology major on a pre-med track. After struggling with chemistry early in college, I attended more office hours and supplemental instruction sessions and eventually brought my grade back up to an A.

As a pre-med student, I found it difficult to get the experience I needed shadowing doctors, so I eventually switched my major to biochemistry. I began doing research and discovered that I really enjoyed the process of developing and testing ideas. My senior year, I switched my major again to chemistry so I could take more chemistry courses.

I had never considered graduate school until a research professor from the University of Pittsburgh came to campus to give a talk. Inspired by the presentation, I applied to the graduate program in chemistry and was accepted.

During my first year as a graduate student, I attended a research talk on computational chemistry. I had no experience with coding, but I was intrigued by the field and asked the professor if I could rotate in her lab. She eventually invited me to join the lab, where I taught myself how to code and perform computational chemistry experiments.

I’ve been interested in these tools ever since. Computational chemistry perfectly blends my interests in chemistry and computers.

What’s your go-to thing to make for dinner?

Usually pasta. My father’s side of the family started a hotel and restaurant when they came to the U.S., so I like to think my affinity for pasta is genetic. Growing up, my parents also made marinara sauce each year from tomatoes in our backyard garden, which taught me a lot about balancing flavors and spices.

More recently, I’ve been working on my pizza-making skills. During COVID-19, I decided to learn how to make my own, and I’ve improved to the point where my mother — the ultimate pizza critic — prefers my pizza to the local shops. As a perfectionist, though, I’m always looking for ways to improve.

What did you like to do growing up?

I grew up in a fairly rural part of the Delmarva Peninsula, so I spent a lot of time outdoors. I loved catching and collecting butterflies, moths and other bugs. I would create large displays and hang them around the house.

Because we lived on a peninsula surrounded by water, my father loved fishing and took us often. I didn’t always appreciate it as a kid, but I’m grateful he did because I have so many fond memories of being on the water and learned valuable life skills from fishing. We explored much of the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean side of Delaware and Virginia’s Eastern Shore.

My father also took me scouting and hunting. Some of my clearest memories from middle and high school are not from school, but from deer, duck, goose and rabbit hunting with my father, uncle, grandfather, cousins and their friends.

We didn’t get internet at home until I was in middle or high school. Once we did, I loved tinkering with computers and installing early versions of Ubuntu Linux. I spent hours taking old laptops apart and putting them back together. Looking back, I think those experiences helped spark my interest in computational chemistry, which combines my interests in chemistry and computers.

Have you traveled to any interesting places?

One of the most interesting trips I’ve taken was a weeklong visit to Rwanda to see a friend who was teaching English there in the Peace Corps. Because the country is relatively small, we were able to travel across much of it in just one week. We went on safari in the western plains, hiked a volcano in the north, went night fishing on a lake in the east, camped in a jungle in the south and spent time in the capital city.

It was a fast-paced trip, but I have so many great memories from it. I’m really glad I had the opportunity to experience so much of Rwanda in such a short time.