As a trained chemist and group leader at L’Oréal USA, Atis oversees a group of chemists and engineers as they work together to create cosmetics products for the various brands under the L’Oréal umbrella. Atis and two other chemists spent six years developing new shades of makeup that complement the diverse skin tones of women of color. After taking skin tone measurements from over 27,000 women from 57 different countries, the end result was the launch of 30 new shades of make-up for various brands including L’Oréal’s True Match.
THE PERKS: Atis says one of the biggest joys from her job is being able to show by example that a science degree can be used for many careers outside of the usual ones.
THE WORKDAY: “When we were traveling to various places taking skin tone measurements, sometimes people thought we were just actors,” Atis says. “At first they didn’t believe that we were actually black women scientists. Once they figured that out, they would bring over their grandchildren and daughters to talk to us about our careers.”
SOURCE: Cool Jobs: L’Oreal Chemist Takes Passion for Cosmetics Global.