{"id":24,"date":"2024-09-18T17:57:11","date_gmt":"2024-09-18T17:57:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sanjac.mycareerfocus.org\/fall-2024-volume-5-issue-3\/former-engineer-finds-second-career-in-cancer-data-management\/"},"modified":"2024-10-08T18:08:54","modified_gmt":"2024-10-08T18:08:54","slug":"former-engineer-finds-second-career-in-cancer-data-management","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sanjac.mycareerfocus.org\/fall-2024-volume-5-issue-3\/former-engineer-finds-second-career-in-cancer-data-management\/","title":{"rendered":"Former engineer finds second career in cancer data management"},"content":{"rendered":"

R<\/b><\/span>oland Rodriguez loved being a chemical engineer. Frankly, after three decades in the petrochemical industry with a good paycheck, he wasn\u2019t considering a change.<\/span><\/p>\n

Then came 2020. COVID-19 suspended projects at his Houston engineering firm, and without projects to manage, Rodriguez got laid off. A year later, no new jobs had turned up.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s when I started reevaluating the role of work in my life,\u201d he said. \u201cI started looking for something with a deeper meaning.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The layoff became his chance to pursue more than a paycheck but a purpose.<\/span><\/p>\n

Rethinking medical field<\/span><\/h3>\n
\"Roland

Roland Rodriguez<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

Years earlier, while earning his bachelor\u2019s degree in chemical engineering, Rodriguez had minored in biomedical engineering. Fascinated with the human body, he took classes like cellular biology, imagining someday working in the medical field.<\/span><\/p>\n

That day didn\u2019t seem likely until 2021. Without any petrochemical prospects, he considered other options. He kept returning to his college minor and the medical field.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI really enjoyed my biomedical engineering classes and thought this may be the area God is directing me to now,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Rodriguez reflected on transferable skills that could align with a community college degree program. While browsing San Jacinto College\u2019s website, he discovered cancer data management<\/a><\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

It was a \u201cThis is it!\u201d moment. The program trains students to maintain cancer registry data used for treatment plans and research.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always enjoyed using computers for data collection, entry, and analysis as an engineer,\u201d he said. \u201cI wanted to combine these skills along with my passion to help others and use them in a health care profession.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Returning to school<\/span><\/h3>\n

Rodriguez applied and got accepted into San Jac\u2019s cancer data management program in spring 2022. He pursued full-time \u201conline anytime\u201d classes, which meant he didn\u2019t commute to or from campus the entire two years.<\/span><\/p>\n

Entering the program, Rodriguez faced two mental hurdles. First was navigating 100% online coursework. Although computer-savvy, he wasn\u2019t sure online classes would be the best fit.<\/span><\/p>\n

With a laptop, dual monitors, and a stable internet connection, he found online classes not only convenient <\/span>but ideal.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted to see, especially in that first semester at San Jac, how these online courses went and if they were meeting my needs or not,\u201d he said. \u201cBoy, they exceeded expectations.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

His second challenge was re-entering the job interview circuit after 30 years. Here \u2014 like the cancer data management program itself \u2014 San Jac prepared him well. Career services staff helped him do practice interviews, update his resume, and write his first cover letter.<\/span><\/p>\n

When Rodriguez graduated with his advanced technical certificate in fall 2023 and passed the certification exam the following spring, he felt ready for both the interview process and the profession.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fighting cancer<\/span><\/h3>\n

Although nervous that recruiters might not see past his age, Rodriguez landed a job quickly. In July 2024, he started as a certified oncology data specialist at Houston Methodist Neal Cancer Center at Sugar Land.<\/span><\/p>\n

He is enjoying the start of his second career. What draws him to the oncology field is knowing he’s making a difference.<\/span><\/p>\n

Rodriguez pulls data from patient medical records \u2014 everything from demographics to cancer type, behavior, stage, treatment, and outcome. He also sits on tumor boards, where oncologists discuss and determine the best treatment plan for each cancer patient.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI enjoy hearing their reasoning \u2014 how they go about treating the cancer but also\u202fhow they treat each cancer patient holistically and with dignity and respect,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Rodriguez also has personal reasons for pursuing cancer data management. He lost his mom to metastatic breast cancer in 2000.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just an awful disease and something we need to eradicate,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s what keeps me going. I\u2019m excited to be in the field now, using all my technical skills to help with this fight.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Trusting the journey<\/span><\/h3>\n

Looking back, Rodriguez realizes none of his hurdles were insurmountable. Pivoting to a new field and searching job listings again might have seemed a \u201charrowing task.\u201d But once he found San Jac\u2019s cancer data management program, everything fell into place.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re motivated and want to make a change in your life in a positive direction, you\u2019ll do what it takes,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Today, Rodriguez wakes up excited to work. Not only does he learn something new each day, but he\u2019s helping cancer researchers take one step closer to a cure.<\/span><\/p>\n

When the door closed on engineering, Rodriguez says God clearly opened a new one.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSome people try to force things to happen and get a certain result,\u201d he said. \u201cThat wasn\u2019t my case at all.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Learn more about the cancer data management program<\/a><\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

By Courtney Morris<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Roland Rodriguez loved being a chemical engineer. Frankly, after three decades in the petrochemical industry with a good paycheck, he wasn\u2019t considering a change. Then came 2020. COVID-19 suspended projects at his Houston engineering firm, and without projects to manage, Rodriguez got laid off. A year later, no new jobs had turned up. \u201cThat\u2019s when… read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":65,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,1],"tags":[],"article_type":[],"class_list":["post-24","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-success-story","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nFormer engineer finds second career in cancer data management - Fall 2024, Volume 5 \u2013 Issue 3<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sanjac.mycareerfocus.org\/fall-2024-volume-5-issue-3\/former-engineer-finds-second-career-in-cancer-data-management\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Former engineer finds second career in cancer data management\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Roland Rodriguez loved being a chemical engineer. Frankly, after three decades in the petrochemical industry with a good paycheck, he wasn\u2019t considering a change. Then came 2020. COVID-19 suspended projects at his Houston engineering firm, and without projects to manage, Rodriguez got laid off. 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