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The New York Times recently featured alumna Sierra Nguyen ‘18, whose brave career choice had some roots in her experience at Saint Mary’s.

As part of The Hunt series, which follows homebuyers’ searches, Nguyen was spotlighted as  to put down roots near the art gallery where she works. 

The New York Times article notes that her successful art career only happened after she pivotally decided to stop pursuing her long-held goal of medical school. She is now the Gallery Director at . 

“I have a really strong self-trust muscle,” Nguyen told the Times.

Did that begin in Moraga? “Maybe that did start at Saint Mary’s,” she says on the phone with us. On the day the article was published—amidst many incoming messages—Nguyen made time for a brief call with the Saint Mary’s Alumni Office. 

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Finding the Balance

While at SMC, Nguyen was on a pre-med track and aimed to attend medical school after graduation. She majored in Sociology and, crucially, had minors in Chemistry and Art Theory and Criticism.

“I learned that Chemistry and the arts are not as dichotomous as people might think,” Nguyen says. “They’re both built on close observation. And that is bolstered by things like Seminar, inviting that close looking and deep reflection.”

Nguyen recounted numerous fond memories, including working in the chemistry lab with Dr. Karen Ruff and revelatory art courses with Peter Freund. She visited office hours “all the time” and told professors everything she was considering, establishing deep, personal relationships.

"I don't think I’d be where I am without their guidance," Sierra Nguyen ’18 says about Saint Mary's professors and friends.

They played the role of true educators, listening to and guiding Nguyen. “All of my professors said, ‘Whatever you do, you’re going to be really successful,’” she says. “So I felt supported in whatever decision felt best for me.” 

Another catalyst for change: friends she had met at Saint Mary’s who would ask the age-old hypothetical question, If money wasn’t a concern, what would you do? “My answer would be: I’d go into art. I’d write about art. I’d talk about art. I’d help people understand art.” 

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Everyone could see it but her, Nguyen says. Her friends asked the life-changing questions and her professors wanted her to find answers on her own. “I don’t think I'd be where I am without their guidance,” she tells us. 

Nguyen began actively looking for a home in October 2023. Her search was born out of a desire to build a life she loved and find the right work-life balance, she says.

Deciding to follow her heart has led to a fulfilling and successful early career. And now, she has a home to call her own.