Meredith Johnstone's journey from a studio art major to the Director of Product Design at Alation is a testament to the power of following one's interests and embracing unexpected opportunities.
Meredith's career path was far from linear. She began as a studio art major at the University of Iowa in 2008, initially torn between computer science and art. Quickly realizing that she wasn't cut out for a traditional artist's life, Meredith added psychology as a second major, drawn to its scientific approach.
Her curiosity led her to join a research lab as a freshman, where she worked on speech perception studies using eye-tracking technology. This experience, combined with a fortuitous internship at Fidelity Investments, introduced Meredith to the world of usability research and user experience (UX) design.
