Anjal J. (IN A NUTSHELL)

Anjal Jain is a first year student at Yale University, double majoring in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology as well as Music. She graduated from the Orange County School of the Arts High School as a Distinguished Valedictorian in 2022. Her academic passion is STEM, specifically in Ophthalmology, where she has worked as a research intern at Stanford University's Byers Eye Institute, USC's Keck School of Medicine, and UCLA's Doheny Eye Institute with multiple publications in the field. Some of her research topics include artificial intelligence applications to cataract surgeries, early detection of glaucoma, and drusen analysis in macular degeneration. Recently, she was awarded the Davidson Fellowship of $25,000 from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Hahn Scholarship of $10,000 from Yale University to continue her research. Currently, she is working at the Brian Hafler Lab at Yale University, investigating the implications of the COVID spike protein on cases of age related macular degeneration. Along with her academic endeavors, Anjal has a passion for classical voice. She has been singing since the age of 4, and has explored multiple genres including Hindustani Classical singing, Bollywood, opera, and popular music. Anjal was the grand finalist on the Indian singing reality TV show “Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Little Champs,” where she was flown to Mumbai to compete with aspiring Bollywood singers from all over the world. Currently she is ​​a part of Yale's Glee Club, Something Extra a cappella group, and Dhwani Musicians, where she will be singing in Kenya, New Delhi, Chennai, Washington D.C., and New York this year. Anjal’s love for singing also blossomed her interest in Bharatanatyam, Indian Classical dance. Anjal trained under the Arpana Dance Company for 12 years and recently completed her Arangetram, a 2 hour solo debut marking her graduation in the art form. Anjal has also explored acting in Los Angeles, where she was casted in the movie Blockers (top 100 grossing 2018 films), 6 Minutes short film, and commercials for Disney’s Dream Big Princess, Disney’s International Women‘s Day, Harry Potter Universal Studios, Nike’s Dream Further, Bop-It, Lenovo, etc. Combining her passions for low vision and music, Anjal spearheads a non-profit organization, Eye Matter International (501c3), where she leads projects that increase accessibility and inclusivity in the arts for the international low vision community. Eye Matter hosted international art classes with 100 low vision students from 15 different countries, teaching 11 different art forms. At the end of the art classes, all students performed at an international showcase, providing them with the platform to showcase their newfound artistic passions and interact with esteemed guests such as Stanford’s ophthalmology professor Sophia Wang. Anjal continues to organize and lead projects as such through Eye Matter. Anjal is a huge Harry Potter fan, where she identifies with the Ravenclaw house and frequently re-reads and re-watches the books and movies. She is very excited to purchase the new Harry Potter video game on the Xbox and plans to spend her summer time fighting in duels and creating potions.