Special Events

Overcoming Imposter Syndrome: Strategies for Success
October 15, 2025 at 5:30pm

You’ve earned your place in this program through talent, dedication, and hard work. Yet even at the highest levels of training, many accomplished students quietly question whether they truly belong. Imposter Syndrome is common among high-achievers, especially when transitioning into competitive environments filled with equally talented peers.

In this interactive workshop, hosted by Monica Pheifer, medical device professional and engineering leadership educator, we’ll explore:

• What imposter syndrome is and why it often emerges in advanced scholarship and training.
• How cognitive biases like the Dunning–Kruger effect contribute to self-doubt.
• The costs of unchecked imposter feelings on performance and mindset.
• Research-informed strategies to reframe challenges, adopt a growth mindset, and sustain confidence.

The session concludes with a collaborative challenge designed to illustrate how experimentation, failure, and iteration are essential steps on the path to mastery. Participants will leave with both insight and practical tools to navigate their own Imposter Syndrome and thrive in their academic and professional journeys.

Monica Pheifer Bio
Monica Pheifer is a Principal Lecturer for the Riccio-MIT Graduate Engineering Leadership Program (GradEL). Prior to joining MIT, Monica spent 15 years in industry with Johnson & Johnson. Her career spanned several roles of increasing responsibility across both the Medical Device and Consumer divisions. Her breadth of experience covers Supply Chain, Quality, Design, Operations, and Project Management with particular depth in Quality Systems for Medical Devices and Capability Development for Supply Chain professionals.

Monica holds a BS in Chemical Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University and an MS in Engineering Management from Tufts University. For 8 years, while working at J&J she also developed and taught an Engineering Management course to engineering undergraduates at Tufts University. She has a real passion for Process Improvement and Talent Development.

Today, Monica focuses on “engineering better engineers” with the GradEL program, teaching courses on product development and coaching high-impact internship students on career readiness.

 

Past Events:

Evening Series Leadership in a Non-Profit Global Health Foundation with David Kaufman, M.D., Ph.D., February 12, 2019

Evening Series Optimizing Success of Physician-Scientists, March 22, 2018

Evening Series From Academia to Industry Leadership, January 31, 2017

Evening Series Meet Third Rock Ventures, November 3, 2016

Physician-Scientist Symposium, Friday November 14, 2014

Leaders in Biomedicine Lecture, Oct. 17, 2013, Dr. Laurie H. Glimcher

Louis G. Lange, M.D., Ph.D. Symposium on Academia-Industry Synergy at the Forefront of Translational Medicine
December 10th, 2013