Humans of UW Bioengineering

Alex Ochs is a first year PhD student. Read more to learn about how he found his passion for biology and human health, despite facing challenges coming to BioE with a background in mechanics gained during his Master’s studies, and how he finds work-life balance at school.

After wrapping up the second year of the Humans of UW Bioengineering blog, recent B.S. grads Vanessa Nguyen and Samantha Sun reflect on their motivation to become involved in the project and how they found inspiration in working with their fellow students to share their stories.

Senior Timothy Bi, part of the Daggett lab, talks about his experience in UW BioE and UW Academy. He sees med school in his future, but is planning to work for a few years and figure out his next steps.

Senior Yiming Li talks about her research investigating the blood protein Von Willebrand factor (VWF) to better understand how to better control blood clotting, and how a sports injury led her to discover bioengineering. She reflects on how the BioE undergrad cohort system enhanced her experience in the major, and her hopes to pursue health care solutions for low-resource settings in her master's degree study at Cornell.

Senior Robyn Langevin talks about her work in the Seelig synthetic biology lab on a new diagnostic that detects differential gene expression associated with cancer or autoimmune disorders. She also discusses the importance of academic outreach and giving back to the community, and how personal struggles helped her gain perspective on her experience in BioE.

Luke is an undergraduate senior in bioengineering, and he has a long background before coming to UW as a non-traditional student. He balances school with running his own plumbing company, and you may recognize him as the father of our unofficial BioE mascot, Chinook. Read more about his story...

My name is Harrison. I do research in the Zheng Lab and I currently work at a cancer therapeutic company, Immune Design. After I graduate I will be attending the University of Michigan to pursue a Ph.D. in biomedical engineering.

I’m Adam and I am in Dr. Ruikang (Ricky) Wang’s lab. The lab does OCT (optical coherence tomography) research. The goal of my  capstone is to design an image processing tool for the lab. After I graduate, I am going for a Ph.D at Purdue University because I want the freedom that a Ph.D. offers to choose what I research. I might go into academia afterwards.

I’m Kim, and I’m in the GRID/Neural Systems lab. My project is about restoring tactile feedback through electrocorticography grids (ECoG) via the somatosensory cortex, or more simply put, how to make people feel again. After graduation, I’ll be traveling in Europe just for fun. I think this will be the last time I’ll get to travel for an extended period without having to worry about school or jobs. Afterwards, I’ll be working in ultrasound systems at Philips as a software engineer.

In addition to his research in Dr. Xiaohu Gao's lab and work on a team design project, senior Brian Gao is a member of the BioE Mental Health Initiative – an honors project focused on improving the state of mental health in the department through grassroots community-building.

Alyssa is an undergraduate senior in BioE, and is double-majoring in computer engineering. She is working in a biomechanics lab led by Dr. William Ledoux, where she investigates how certain joints are affected before and after ankle replacement surgery. She also is part of the Right Brain Campaign and volunteers at Seattle Children’s Hospital. Learn more about her experiences at UW and how she balances all of her activities.

Alan Cabrera is a senior in BioE currently working in the Seelig Lab. Between his [...]

Riley is an undergraduate senior in bioengineering, and he’s also actively involved in the UW’s ROTC program. Read more about how he balances his participation in these two programs and how they both contribute to his life in college.

Preston is an undergraduate junior in bioengineering, and he is interested in the electrical engineering/programming aspects of bioengineering. Read more about how his experiences in and out of BioE, and being in a competitive major, have shaped his interests and goals.

Sam Krahling is a senior in the Max Lab in the Speech and Hearing Sciences Department, and plans to go into consulting and potentially pursue an MBA in the future. Her activities range far beyond BioE, including becoming ordained to marry her housemates.

Soren Johnson is a senior in bioengineering currently doing research in Dr. Suzie Pun’s lab. His work involves developing nonviral methods for efficient and stable gene transfer in renal progenitor cells. Upon graduation he plans on working in industry after hiking across the United States along the Pacific Crest Trail.

Yoshitaka Goto began in bioengineering as a direct freshman admit and is now a senior. He is actively involved with iGEM, where he has served several leadership roles. He also represented the UW team at the 2016 and 2017 iGEM International Competition, where they won bronze and silver, respectively. He currently works in Dr. Herbert Sauro’s lab, where he performs computational modelling of E. coli and investigates how specific genetic pathways may alter the bacteria’s behavior, specifically with resource drain and cost.

Undergrad Janis Shin discusses her journey from growing up in an undeserved community to BioE, and to overcome the adversity she experienced against her academic pursuits. Looking forward, she hopes to empower students from backgrounds like hers to chase their dreams.

Kevin Shi is a graduate student in the MS/BS program and performs cellular engineering research in the Davis lab, investigating cardiac function and repair. Last year, he worked with Dr. Dianne Hendricks to develop bioengineering outreach modules for local schools. Now, he works to improve awareness and support of mental wellness, student health, and suicide prevention. As an advocate for student wellness, Kevin is motivated by his own experiences in BioE. Learn more about his story and student wellness resources at UW.

Every UW bioengineer has a story to tell - and Humans of UW Bioengineering is ready to tell them! We look forward to celebrating our community’s resilience and diversity with you - stay tuned.