Being the first carries great responsibility. Pabita Dhungel MS ’19 accepts that responsibility with great honor.
“When you achieve great things in life, you face many challenges. But at the same time, you create opportunities for people that are coming forward too,” said Dhungel, the first-ever student from Nepal to graduate from Pacific University’s Master of Science in Vision Science program. “So for me, being first means opening the door and holding it open so that other people striving for the same path can walk through it.”
Dhungel, now a PhD candidate and myopia researcher at the University of California, Berkeley, received the Pacific University Alumni Association’s 2026 Emerging Leader Award, recognizing outstanding leadership in an alum’s vocation, community service, and /or service to the university. Alumni are eligible for nomination through their 10-year class reunion.
“I’m tremendously honored and deeply grateful to be awarded the Emerging Leader Award early in my career as a vision scientist,” Dhungel said. “It is recognition of how important it is to continuously move forward in your life, especially as an international student coming from a third-world country like Nepal.”
Dhungel earned a bachelor’s degree in optometry from Nepal’s Tribhuvan University and spent a couple of years as a consulting optometrist. It was there that she decided that research offers her greater opportunities for impact.
According to the World Health Organization, at least 2.2 billion people are nearsighted worldwide. By 2050, approximately half of the global population is expected to be myopic. Furthermore, two in three people in low-income countries who could benefit from eyeglasses lack access to them.
“Although I sometimes miss the joy of seeing patients in clinic, I feel like my goals are bigger than treating one patient at a time,” she said. “I feel like doing something beyond patient care, aligning myself with research, can potentially impact maybe thousands or millions of people if I find something that translates from the lab to the bedside of patients.”
At Pacific, Dhungel distinguished herself as a rising researcher in vision science. She received multiple awards for her research into the biomechanics of the eye and myopia, including the 2019 Joe & Janet Barr Early Career Cornea & Contact Lens Research Award from the American Academy of Optometry, a national honor rarely awarded to a master’s student.
She’s since gone on to Berkeley, where she’s advancing research into the biomechanics of the eye and the causes and treatments for myopia. She’s also that program’s first Nepali student. She’s been honored with multiple fellowships from the American Academy of Optometry Foundation, as well as several institutional awards to continue her graduate research.
She is also focused on advocating for others to have the same opportunities she’s worked for, particularly women and underrepresented populations in vision science and other healthcare fields.
At Berkeley, she is an ambassador for the STEM-FYI program, which provides support and community for first-year students in the university’s Graduate Division. She also serves as co-chair of the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Council for the Herbert Wertheim School of Optometry & Vision Science.
In 2025, Dhungel was selected by Online Khabar, a Nepali news organization, for its “50 Influential Women in Nepal” list, recognizing her as an inspiration for women in Nepal who aspire to careers in science and research. Released on International Women’s Day, it is a poignant honor considering that education for women in Nepal has only become mainstream in the last 30 years.
Dhungel said that being named to the list is not only an honor for her work, but honors all women in Nepal who are dreaming of something bigger.
“It shows that Nepal has extraordinary talents, and women who are encouraged to be in science can contribute,” she said. “I feel like if women have equal access to education and mentorship, everyone can realize their true potential.”
Pacific College of Optometry Associate Professor Patrick Caroline, who nominated Dhungel for the Emerging Leader Award, said that she is everything that he hopes that Pacific students can be.
“Pabita stands as a true embodiment of Pacific’s values: academic excellence, intellectual curiosity, and a commitment to improving lives through science, education and service,” Caroline said. “Beyond her research excellence, Pabita has proven herself as a thoughtful leader and mentor.”
On track to receive her PhD in Spring 2027, Dhungel doesn’t know exactly what’s next, but she knows her purpose is clear:
“My long-term goal is to become a vision scientist and an academic leader who continues to pursue mitigating the problems of myopia and try to slow it down,” she said. “At the same time, I want to make sure that it is equitable for all of the people in the world, not only for people who have access, but make sure it is accessible to all.”