Award-Winning NJIT Grad Set for Successful Career as Forensic Chemist

Katya Cunha took the stage at Commencement 2025 amid a wave of major honors — NJIT’s Presidential Award, selection as Jordan Hu College of Science and Liberal Arts' gonfalon carrier and the sole national recipient of the American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors Undergraduate Award, a distinction that may now help launch her career as a forensic chemist.

Cunha said a pivotal moment in her incredibly successful undergrad journey came at the end of her first year when she watched NJIT’s President’s Medal winners honored at Commencement 2022 — a medal awarded to just one undergraduate and one graduate each year.

Shortly after, she switched her major from biochemistry to forensic science.

“I remember ending my first semester with a 4.0 GPA, and seeing those students on stage made me set a personal goal to keep my 4.0 all four years and to be the one on that stage. I even wrote that goal down … I still have the piece of paper,” said Cunha, a native of Newark’s Ironbound district, who realized both ambitions at the ceremony.

“At the same time, I had learned more about NJIT’s forensics program in my first year and felt compelled to switch majors because I was drawn to how the work can be applied to helping others,” she added. “Forensic science, and its pursuit of truth and justice, just makes me feel more connected to people and the wider community.”

The decision set her on a path to find her mentor and hands-on work with cutting-edge forensic lab equipment at NJIT’s Mass Spectrometry Center, under chemistry Professor Hao Chen.

There, she’d eventually earn a paid, part-time research assistant position involved in studies spanning everything from protein characterization to advanced detection of environmental contaminants known as PFAS, or “forever chemicals.”

“All along I was learning lab skills in analytical chemistry that I’ll carry with me into any future role,” said Cunha, who is currently weighing lab opportunities with several employers. “Knowing how to work carefully and confidently in a lab environment, respecting protocols and being honest with results — those lessons have been crucial in my development as a forensic chemist.”

However, the culmination of Cunha’s work at NJIT arrived earlier this year when she was encouraged by NJIT Forensic Program Director David Fisher to apply for the American Society of Crime Lab Directors (ASCLD) scholarship — a highly competitive award among undergraduate forensics majors sponsored by the nation’s crime labs.

In April, she received official notice via email from ASCLD Forensic Research Committee Co-Chair Laura Tramontin.

“I almost didn’t apply because I didn’t think I had a chance. When I got the news that I was the only undergraduate winner this year, it was a huge deal for me,” said Cunha. “The award connects me directly with top crime lab directors across the country and opens doors for future opportunities.”

Opportunity may be knocking already.

Cunha could soon return to her alma mater through a part-time internship tied to the ASCLD scholarship and New Jersey State Police, where she would help lead efforts to improve the way state crime labs screen samples related to drug cases.

Cunha says the collaboration, still in its planning stages, would focus on developing faster, more accurate drug detection in body fluids using an advanced analytical tool housed in Chen’s lab that identifies and measures trace substances at the molecular level — a liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometer.

“The technology is being introduced in state and federal crime labs for rapid toxicology screenings, with a particular focus on detecting Schedule I drugs now,” Cunha explained. “My role would involve helping NJSP establish and develop methods for detecting trace amounts of drugs in body fluids, like urine and blood, using this cutting-edge equipment.

“It’s exciting to already have so much hands-on experience with technology that’s still so new it’s not established in crime labs yet, and it’s great to know that the skillset I’ve gained is in high demand.”

For now, Cunha plans to gain at least two years of lab experience as a forensic chemist — the required step to qualify for crime lab opportunities with New Jersey’s State Police.

Ultimately, she hopes to open doors to opportunities at crime labs across the U.S. and beyond.

“NJIT prepared me well, and now my focus is on taking the next step and gaining vital real-world lab experience,” Cunha said. “One day, I hope to work in federal labs like the FBI or NCIS, where I can use my skills on a broader scale — and even potentially take my career abroad, combining forensic science with my love of travel.”