Breaking into a field like neurotechnology can feel intimidating. It’s complex, technical, and often framed as something you’re only allowed to touch once you’ve reached a certain level.

In this episode of our new season of Across STEM with YSI, Amirali Banani sits down with Joshua Thomas Carter, a psychology undergraduate student (graduating later this year!) at the University of Surrey in Guildford, England and the Founder and President of the Surrey Neurotech Society, to talk about what it means to step into an incredibly exciting, emerging field when you don’t yet have all the answers.

Much of this episode stems from Joshua's recent talk at STEM Quest 3.0, Journey into Neurotechnology: Lessons and Advice, where he shared how he went from being deeply curious about the brain to working hands-on with neurostimulation for cognitive enhancement and building his university’s first-ever neurotech society. In this conversation, he expands on that incredible journey so far—one that is shaped far more by curiosity, persistence, and initiative than by certainty or a perfectly mapped-out plan.

Rather than treating neurotechnology as something distant or reserved for experts with years of experience, Joshua breaks it down as a field that’s still unraveling and evolving and is very much open to students willing to learn. He reflects on his first year in neurotech, from navigating unfamiliar research papers and technical language that needed Googling every few words to discovering opportunities that were closer than he ever expected. Along the way, he speaks candidly about the moments of doubt, the learning curves, and the realization that waiting to feel “ready” often means never starting at all.

A big part of Joshua’s story is about access. He challenges the idea that neurotech belongs only to engineers or long-established researchers, and talks about why students from a wide range of backgrounds have a tremendously important role to play. That belief is what pushed him to build a student neurotech community from scratch at his university, creating a space where interest could turn into collaboration, and where learning did not require permission. Along with this, we also explore the responsibility that comes with working on the brain itself (neuroethics!). Joshua speaks thoughtfully about ethics in neurotechnology, why moving fast isn’t always the right approach, and how conversations around philosophy and human impact are just as important as technical innovation.

At its core, this episode is for anyone who’s ever felt drawn to a field but unsure how to begin. Joshua’s story is still unfolding, and that’s exactly what makes it powerful. It shows that meaningful STEM journeys do not ever start with certainty, even in a complex field like neurotechnology.

They start with asking questions, reaching out to people, learning from any resource at your disposal, and taking the first step forward without hesitation.

That’s what it is all about.