Columbia Engineering Announces Class Day Speaker Nina Tandon ‘09SEAS
Nina Tandon ‘09SEAS. Credit: Emily Winiker
Nina Tandon ‘09SEAS, an emerging leader in personalized medicine and science entrepreneurship and a biomedical engineering PhD from Columbia, will address the Class of 2023 at Columbia Engineering’s Class Day celebration on Monday, May 15, 2023.
Tandon is the CEO and co-founder of EpiBone, a company she started at Columbia in the lab of Gordana Vunjak-Novakovic, University Professor and Mikati Foundation Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Medical Sciences.
"The engineering graduates of Columbia University are among the brightest and most talented individuals in the world, and I have no doubt that they will go on to achieve great things in their careers,” said Tandon. “As someone who has walked the same halls, sat in the same classrooms, and pursued the same passion for engineering at Columbia, it is an incredible honor to address the graduating class of engineers and to celebrate their accomplishments as they embark on their next chapter."
Tandon obtained her BS from Cooper Union in electrical engineering and her MS in bioelectrical engineering from MIT. After beginning her career in telecommunications, Tandon won a Fulbright Scholarship to work on a biomedical device for cancer. The experience prompted her to pursue an MS and PhD in biomedical engineering from Columbia. While working in the lab of Vunjak-Novakovic, Tandon co-founded EpiBone, a regenerative medicine company that allows patients to “grow their own bone” for skeletal reconstruction. EpiBone uses a patient’s own cells and a customized bioreactor to cultivate a bone graft that becomes part of the patient’s body. The privately-held company can grow a new personalized bone graft in just three weeks.
Studying engineering at Columbia was a unique experience, where the intersection of top tier engineering, law, and business schools created a dynamic environment that prepared me for the multi-faceted demands of scientific entrepreneurship.
“Nina’s career and character encompass many aspects of the Engineering for Humanity vision and is an inspiration to the newest generation of engineers who are just beginning their professional work,” said Shih-Fu Chang, Dean of Columbia Engineering and Morris A. and Alma Schapiro Professor. “Her leadership at Epibone and innovation in the field of medicine and health is bringing transformational change to this area, ushering in a new era of personalized medicine and truly exhibiting how engineers are making a direct impact on society.”
After completing her PhD, Tandon also received an executive MBA from Columbia Business School in healthcare entrepreneurship and completed a postdoc in stem cells and tissue engineering. Looking back at her time at Columbia, Tandon credits the interdisciplinary and collaborative environment for helping to stimulate an entrepreneurial mindset.
"Studying engineering at Columbia was a unique experience, where the intersection of top tier engineering, law, and business schools created a dynamic environment that prepared me for the multi-faceted demands of scientific entrepreneurship,” she said. “It wasn't just about mastering technical skills, but also understanding the legal and business implications of innovation. Columbia provided the perfect ecosystem for fostering interdisciplinary collaboration, and it is what made studying engineering so great.”
Tandon has been named one of the 100 Most Creative People in Business by Fast Company, Crain’s 40 under 40, and a World Economic Forum Tech Pioneer. She has addressed the Milken and Bloomberg Tech conferences and her TED Talk on personalized medicine has been viewed more than one million times.