Jordan Reynolds
Integrating care and
confidence into data
and computer science
Purdue senior is turning an Eli Lilly internship into a career improving health care accessibility
Solving problems has always come naturally to Jordan Reynolds. In elementary school, you could find her tackling Sudoku in the mornings. As a Purdue senior majoring in data science and applied statistics with minors in Spanish and bioinformatics, she’s presented with some of today’s toughest challenges. Medicine is being made more effective through her work with the Eli Lilly and Company and Purdue University Research Alliance Center. After she graduates, she’s joining Lilly full time as a software product engineer.
Q+A
What excites you about your major?
While my skills are more math- and stats-based, my interests lie in health and pharmaceuticals. Data science is versatile and can be applied to any industry. If you’re coming out of school with a degree like mine, you can go into finance, tech, energy, sports, anything. I’m looking forward to using what I’ve learned to advance medicine.
Q+A
How has your internship influenced the way you think about the future?
Between the work I contributed to and the time I spent in Indianapolis, my internship completely set the course for what I’m going to do after college. I helped with a patient-facing platform that was inspiring. I had so much fun in Indy — being from the East Coast, I didn’t know what to expect, but I met the most amazing people.
Q+A
What’s been something that’s surprised you in college?
Before this, I wasn’t really into sports, and now I’m a die-hard Purdue basketball fan. Being in Paint Crew has brought unforgettable memories. I never thought I would get that into it, and now I’m the person going to every game and getting my heart rate all the way up.
Q+A
What led you to data science?
Since the beginning, I’ve been inclined toward math. Number and logic puzzles were my favorite! I didn’t know data science was an option until I took a tour at Purdue. I was set — I loved the campus and learned about how many opportunities there are in this major.
Q+A
What do you hope to accomplish in your career?
Working in health care will give me opportunities to save lives. What I put in could bring someone a diagnosis or medicine more efficiently. I’m also interested in developing a platform that’s patient-facing and makes treatments more accessible.
Q+A
How did you secure your internship?
The HEAL research generator is a program through the John Martinson Honors College connecting Purdue and Lilly’s progress. When I went to a computer science career fair, I got to hand the people at Lilly my résumé and say, “I’m already working with you.” I had the relevant, real-world experience I needed.
Q+A
You hear about this Boilermaker "persistence" our students have — what does that mean to you?
When things get difficult and you feel out of place, trust your own abilities. Especially at Purdue, I’ve been surrounded by brilliant people, and you can start to feel like you don’t know what you’re doing. I remind myself that I can figure it out. Persistence can come down to confidence. You can always learn more.
Q+A
What are you most excited for next?
A: It’s just getting better and better. Two of my best friends joined the HEAL research generator with me when we were sophomores, and now we all have full-time offers from Lilly. I’m ecstatic to get back to Indy and see where my next steps take me.
