Team Highlight: Stephanie | From Stage Makeup to Data Science: My Journey to Parallel
by Parallel Health Team

Hi everyone, I’m Stephanie, a Data Science and Comms Intern this summer at Parallel Health! I’m currently a Data Science Master’s student at UCLA, and outside of school I also teach hot yoga, volunteer for a biotech incubator program, and create lifestyle/beauty content for TikTok.
A bit more about me - I was born and raised in Seattle, Washington, and spent most of my free time in the performing arts (dance, figure skating, etc.). Since I started wearing stage makeup to shows and competitions so young, my mom quickly introduced me to skincare - specifically cleanser, moisturizer, and sunscreen. With her guidance and fervor, I diligently followed the skincare routine she provided me through high school, and had flawless skin.

However, things took a turn during my sophomore year at UC Berkeley. I had never had any skin issues, but I decided to turn my skincare routine upside down in an effort to use “clean” skincare, as well as to stop supporting companies that did animal testing. But somehow, a perfect storm of products from premium, well-respected brands led to awful breakouts. For the first time in my life, I had serious, sustained acne –
And I panicked.
I obsessed, stressed, even cried over the state of my skin; I searched frantically for solutions from any avenue - the internet, dermatologists, friends and family - I was overwhelmed with potential products and convincing before-and-afters, but after trying a few for myself with no improvement, I would think, “Why didn’t what worked for them work for me?” And now I had a) so many half-empty skincare products I wouldn’t ever pick up again and b) no money. I went from being excited about social events on campus to anxious and paranoid that my acne would tarnish someone’s first impression of me (while now I know that’s not true, back then, the fear was debilitating).
Eventually, I found a ‘close enough’ solution for my skin – a combination of azelaic acid, clindamycin (an antibiotic), and niacinamide – that resulted in smaller, easily concealed breakouts. (Of course, now that I’m at Parallel, I’m working on moving away from topical antibiotics as I learn more about the skin microbiome). I went on to complete my bachelor's in Data Science with an emphasis in Genetics, and moved to San Francisco to work at a genetic diagnostics company as a data analyst. Around this time I also began creating lifestyle and beauty content on TikTok, and through my videos documenting my post-grad life in the city, I was discovered by Catie from Parallel Health!

Upon my first visit to Parallel Health’s website via an email from Catie, I became enamored with the concept - no trial and error?! Given my rocky relationship with my own skin, I dug further to find that they use whole genome sequencing to eliminate guesswork and data science to extract the root cause (and targeted solution) of an individual’s skin concerns. Due to my background in genetics and data science, this captivated me - anyone who has struggled with their skin knows that skincare is far from one-size-fits-all, and Parallel Health’s precision health approach is exactly what the skincare industry needs today.
It’s only my second week here at Parallel Health, but I’m beyond excited to work with the largest WGS skin microbiome dataset in the world, learn from a team with such talent and passion, and contribute to the greater mission of helping empower others on their personal skincare journeys.