Joel finished his bachelor's degree from Hampshire College in 2014, where he designed his own major, blending studies in cellular and molecular biology, neuroscience, and electrical and computer engineering. At Hampshire, Joel received the Ray and Lorna Coppinger Grant to lead a project developing an optogenetic interface for P19 differentiated neuronal cells. Later, while interning in the Robinson Neuroengineering Lab at Rice University, Joel worked to design and implement a novel platform to investigate single neuron computation using optogenetics and patch-clamp electrophysiology.