BS in Bioengineering
MS in Bioengineering (in progress)
Interdisciplinary Honors
Vice president of Biomedical Engineering Society
Co-Captain of the UW Climbing Team
Undergraduate researcher for the Fetz Research Group
Learning Statement
I can hear it now, my name being called as I rise to take my diploma, but besides that little slip of paper, what has my experience at the University of Washington proven? Fundamentally, I am a student of bioengineering who has participated in the Interdisciplinary Honors program. Looking a little further, one would find that I have a strong GPA, various research experience and am involved in a couple UW affiliated organizations. Beyond that, I am a hard headed adventure seeker who isn’t afraid to voice an unpopular opinion. I am critical of those with the power to manipulate others and often question my beliefs and imagine how they might have been forced upon me. I like to stir the pot. Furthermore, I think of the world around me in terms of explainable scientific phenomenon. What others perceive as a cold distance from emotion, I hold as a shield of science around my romantic heart.
Science had been my mistress long before women started paying me any attention. The thrill of watching a new documentary about neutron stars got me more excited than my first girlfriend (an entirely awkward experience for the 7th grade version of myself). By the time I was applying for colleges, I had the idea that I wanted to be a bioengineer. Essentially it came down to the fact that, in American society, if one likes science and is good at math they become an engineer. Aerospace was my first option, but after considering my growing interest in biology I settled on becoming a bioengineer.
My first year at UW was full of anxiety over making myself look impressive enough to be granted admittance into one of the most competitive majors at the university. School was my life, causing me to lack extra curricular involvement, an aspect of my life I had grown throughout high school. In a spur of randomness, I rode across America on a bicycle the following summer, drastically changing my mentality regarding the human potential for kindness. The next year I moved to correct my un-involvement at the university. I participated in a genetic engineering competition, known as iGEM, started rock climbing competitively, and joined the Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES).
The following year I realized that genetic engineering wasn’t my strongest interest and shifted my focus. Late in the year I joined the Fetz Laboratory, which researches the use of brain-computer interfaces in non-human primates. I also continued rock climbing, worked as the Associate Director of Involvement at McCarty Hall, and became Fundraising Chair for the UW chapter of BMES.
My research has carried over into my final year, as I work to wrap up a year-long independent project, a requirement for graduation. My work focuses on designing longer lasting electrodes to be used intra-cortically as well as within the spinal column. I also have the honor of serving as co-captain of the UW Climbing Team and Vice President of BMES. When it comes down to me looking back on the experiences that shaped my understanding of the world, and my place in it, I can honestly say that the UW Honors Program has fundamentally altered who I am. I have studied budhism, the rise and fall of civilizations, photography, the history of Jerusalem, film, travel writing, how to analyze media content for biases, and several other topics that peaked my inters at the time. It has proved to be a complex balance to my science-heavy bioengineering degree, stoking my interest in being a jack-of-all-trades.
Science had been my mistress long before women started paying me any attention. The thrill of watching a new documentary about neutron stars got me more excited than my first girlfriend (an entirely awkward experience for the 7th grade version of myself). By the time I was applying for colleges, I had the idea that I wanted to be a bioengineer. Essentially it came down to the fact that, in American society, if one likes science and is good at math they become an engineer. Aerospace was my first option, but after considering my growing interest in biology I settled on becoming a bioengineer.
My first year at UW was full of anxiety over making myself look impressive enough to be granted admittance into one of the most competitive majors at the university. School was my life, causing me to lack extra curricular involvement, an aspect of my life I had grown throughout high school. In a spur of randomness, I rode across America on a bicycle the following summer, drastically changing my mentality regarding the human potential for kindness. The next year I moved to correct my un-involvement at the university. I participated in a genetic engineering competition, known as iGEM, started rock climbing competitively, and joined the Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES).
The following year I realized that genetic engineering wasn’t my strongest interest and shifted my focus. Late in the year I joined the Fetz Laboratory, which researches the use of brain-computer interfaces in non-human primates. I also continued rock climbing, worked as the Associate Director of Involvement at McCarty Hall, and became Fundraising Chair for the UW chapter of BMES.
My research has carried over into my final year, as I work to wrap up a year-long independent project, a requirement for graduation. My work focuses on designing longer lasting electrodes to be used intra-cortically as well as within the spinal column. I also have the honor of serving as co-captain of the UW Climbing Team and Vice President of BMES. When it comes down to me looking back on the experiences that shaped my understanding of the world, and my place in it, I can honestly say that the UW Honors Program has fundamentally altered who I am. I have studied budhism, the rise and fall of civilizations, photography, the history of Jerusalem, film, travel writing, how to analyze media content for biases, and several other topics that peaked my inters at the time. It has proved to be a complex balance to my science-heavy bioengineering degree, stoking my interest in being a jack-of-all-trades.