Ins and Outs of Journal Editing
Monday, February 2nd, 2026; 5:30 – 6:30 PM CST
(Virtual)
This session of the “What can I do with my PhD?” career seminars will feature professionals whose facility with scientific writing and desire to stay close to the research led them to careers as editors at scientific journals. The panelists will share their path as journal editors and their day-to-day role in cultivating and ushering manuscripts through the publication process, and will have advice for how you can prepare yourself to make a similar shift.
Rita Strack
Chief Editor at Nature Biomedical Engineering, New York
Rita Strack is a senior editor at Nature Methods and has been with the journal since November of 2014. She primarily handles manuscripts related to imaging, microscopy, and probes, but also has interests in biochemistry, structural biology, and molecular biology. Before becoming an editor, Rita did her graduate work in biochemistry with Ben Glick and Bob Keenan at the University of Chicago, where she studied and engineered red fluorescent proteins. Following her graduate work, she did her postdoc in Samie Jaffrey’s lab at Weill Cornell in Manhattan, where she developed ‘Spinach’ aptamers for imaging RNA in live cells and studied toxic RNAs associated with FXTAS. Beyond handling manuscripts, Rita’s professional interests include improving scientific reproducibility, promoting diversity in science, and helping junior researchers explore careers outside of academia. You can find her on twitter @rita_strack.
Tim Fessenden
Executive Editor at Life Science Alliance Journal
After getting his bachelor degrees from the University of California at Santa Cruz, Dr. Tim Fessenden was admitted to the Cancer Biology PhD program at the University of Chicago. Here he worked with Dr. Margaret Gardel investigating signaling and mechanics that guide multicellular invasion. After graduating, Dr. Fessenden turned to tumor-immune interactions and immune cell migration as a postdoctoral fellow at MIT with Stefani Spranger. In 2021, he transitioned from bench research to scientific editing, joining the Journal of Cell Biology at Rockefeller University Press, where he handled manuscripts across all areas of cell biology that concern the fundamental operations of cells and cell communities. In 2025, Dr. Fessenden moved into a leadership role at the sister journal Life Science Alliance, where he oversees journal operations, implements journal policies, and continues to handle manuscripts spanning the life sciences.
Pavithra Naullage
Managing Editor at the American Chemical Society
Pavithra Naullage is a Managing Editor at the American Chemical Society, where she oversees a portfolio of high‑impact journals at the intersection of computational chemistry and biomedical science. Before moving into scientific publishing, Pavithra trained as a computational chemist. She earned her PhD in computational physical chemistry from the University of Utah in 2020, where she used molecular simulations and theory to study interfacial phenomena in water crystals. She then completed postdoctoral research at the University of California, Berkeley, developing and applying advanced computational methods to investigate protein folding.
In her role at ACS, Pavithra collaborates with editors, reviewers, and cross‑functional publishing teams to shape editorial strategy, strengthen journal communities, and uphold rigorous and fair peer review. She is particularly committed to thoughtful editorial stewardship, clear and inclusive scientific communication, and helping authors position their work for maximum impact. In 2024, she was awarded an Early Career Fellowship from the Society for Scholarly Publishing.
Pavithra enjoys working at the intersection of science, storytelling, and community building.
