Morgan Stosic, a University of Maine psychology Ph.D. 2023 graduate and current NASA research psychologist, was named to the 2026 Forbes 30 Under 30 list in Transportation and Aerospace. The Maine Campus interviewed her to get an idea about her work and how UMaine helped her in this journey to space. Surprisingly, Stosic never thought she could work at NASA before the opportunity presented itself.
“I’ve always had a fascination for planetary sciences, though as a psychological scientist, it took me a long time to realize there could be a place for me at NASA,” said Stosic. “Instead, I had my sights on the medical field, expecting to pursue research on doctor-patient relationships and improving medical and hospital procedures. Because of this, my research was often focused on small team interactions in intense, high stakes environments.”
She got accepted and began working at NASA’s Johnson Space Center as a research psychologist with KBR in October 2024. When asked about what daily tasks for work look like, she said there are four main things she routinely focuses on.
“It typically falls into one of four categories: applying to calls for research to address fundamental risks to NASA, developing research protocols to address these challenges, collecting data from test subjects and analyzing that data,” said Stosic.
She then elaborated on how her research directly connects to space travel and the safety of astronauts.
“I may sometimes be at the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory, one of the world’s largest indoor pools, helping collect data from research subjects in a neutral gravity environment, or I may be meeting with astronauts who are about to take flight, or have recently landed, in order to conduct cognitive performance testing,” said Stosic. “No two days are ever the same!”
By bringing behavioral science into the heart of mission planning and next‑generation spacesuit design, she is helping ensure that as NASA reaches farther into space. She detailed some future projects she is working on.
“One of the projects I am excited to be working on is thinking through the future of a communication platform that astronauts can use to talk with Earth while on Mars,” said Stosic. “We expect there to be at least a 40 minute round-trip communication delay between crews on Mars and Earth, which presents the challenge of finding ways to best optimize communication.”
Stosic notes that it’s an exciting time to be a part of spaceflight, as NASA is moving towards establishing a permanent human presence on the Moon and landing the first humans on Mars. She also emphasized how her passion for human psychology intertwines with her work at NASA.
“I hope to continue working on the science of human psychology in space, both because I find this area of work fascinating to explore, but also because I believe that making advances in space psychology will be an extremely important factor in allowing humans to live and thrive off of Earth,” said Stosic.
Stosic is quick to stress that she did not get here alone. She completed her formal education with a Ph.D. in psychology from the University of Maine in 2023, after earning her undergraduate degree in psychology from Oregon State University.
“I am lucky to have had many mentors, advisors and support systems that championed me as a scientist along the way. The first of these was Dr. Frank Bernieri, who was the lead of the psychology research lab I joined as a freshman undergraduate at Oregon State University,” said Stosic.
She said Bernieri was profoundly influential in teaching Stosic how to think like a scientist, develop research questions and communicate her findings in a way that was understandable to those outside of her science field.
When she talks about how UMaine helped her journey, she said the university was foundational in launching her research career. She added that the most prominent aid was UMaine’s Maine Space Grant Consortium, which she was awarded twice.
Because of her path, Stosic has specific, practical advice for UMaine students who would like to follow in her footsteps and become researchers themselves.
“I would strongly advise that students get involved in research as early as they can! Do some research into the faculty who work in the department you are majoring in and send them an email asking if there are any research opportunities you are able to join,” said Stosic. “If being a scientist is your goal, don’t be afraid to completely immerse yourself in the process and learn as much as you can.”
