Q: Why did you choose to become an engineer?

Bird: I became an engineer to help create products or make discoveries to advance the field of medicine, specifically women’s health.

Q: What is your favorite engineering course?

Bird: My favorite engineering course has been BMEG302, quantitative systems physiology. This was a challenging course but all of the concepts taught were applied to the context of the body, which made learning the concepts much more interesting.

Q: Who is your favorite engineering instructor? 

Bird: My favorite engineering instructor is probably Dr. Ashutosh Khandha. He makes class super fun and is a very good professor!

Q: Briefly describe your summer scholar research.

Bird: I conducted research on how Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia (CDH) impacts blood vessel formation. I completed 3D angiogenesis assays using endothelial cells from patients with and without CDH to determine differences in their sprouting potentials.

Q: What’s your favorite study location or hang-out spot on campus?

Bird: My favorite place to study on campus or hang out between classes is at the whiteboard tables in Perkins.

Q: Tell us about your experience with Engineers Without Borders. 

Bird: I work with a team of other students and professional mentors as well as in country partners to bring clean drinking water to rural areas in Malawi. Over the past summer, we traveled to the area for two and a half weeks to drill two new borehole wells for our communities. We also got to interact with community members and experience the culture first-hand.

Q: What experiences have you had outside the classroom?

Bird: I have really enjoyed getting involved with co-ed intramural sports with my friends. We have played flag football and softball for the past couple of years, and it’s a fun way to stay active and spend time with friends outside of class.

Q: What is your dream job?

Bird: I hope to work at a small startup company that focuses on an aspect of women’s health such as reproduction or infertility.

Q: What has been your favorite Delaware or Newark experience outside of college?

Bird: I love to go to the reservoir with my friends to have picnics and paint.

Q: What advice do you have for new students?

Bird: Get out of your comfort zone and try new things to meet people that you may not meet otherwise.