Career Paths in Toxicology Forum: Jason Aungst

Tue, September 1, 2026 11:00 AM - Tue, September 1, 2026 1:00 PM at 162 Food Safety & Toxicology Building

*Please join the Institute for Integrative Toxicology for a "Career Paths in Toxicology Forum" seminar by Dr. Jason Aungst, Senior Science Advisor for Food Ingredient Safety at the U.S. FDA. Aungst will speak on, “From Bench to Policy: Building a Career in Regulatory Toxicology and the Role of Scientific Integrity,” on Tuesday, September 1, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. in 162 Food Safety and Toxicology Building. Lunch will be provided for students after the seminar. Please RSVP to kbaldwin@msu.edu if you plan to attend.

What does it take to translate cutting-edge toxicology into decisions that protect millions of people? In this informal talk, the Senior Science Advisor for Food Ingredient Safety at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will share his career journey from neuroscience research to senior regulatory leadership — and the pivotal decisions along the way that shaped his path.

Drawing on 18 years of experience at FDA, Dr. Aungst will offer an inside look at what a career in federal regulatory science actually looks like: the responsibilities, the challenges, and the rewards of working at the intersection of science and public policy. He will discuss how enduring principles of scientific rigor and integrity are essential to decision making, and why these principles matter now more than ever in an era of public skepticism and replication crises.

The talk will also explore the frontier of new approach methodologies (NAMs) and invite students to think critically about how foundational scientific principles should guide the development and regulatory acceptance of these emerging tools.

*Fulfills seminar requirements for the Environmental and Integrative Toxicological Sciences Graduate Programs. Seminars that fulfill this requirement are archived at: https://iit.msu.edu/training/eits/recent-seminar-list.html.