“During my first quarter at UW, I didn’t really know what would fit me best. I was amazed at the global impact of engineering health solutions, and at the creativity of each solution when I took BIOEN 215. After the class, I decided to further pursue these interests through BIOE.
I have a passion for global health, so I joined Bioengineers without Borders (BWB), and I am currently leading the team that’s trying to design a low-cost, user-friendly preeclampsia diagnostic device. I’m also in the Woodrow lab, which is focused on global health, so I’ve had a lot of exposure to the field, and I think I’d like to get even more. Since global health is one of my major interests, I’m planning to apply to some post-bac programs that are relevant to global health and BIOE.
Eventually, I want to go to medical school so I can use my engineering skills as a physician. As an undergrad, I’ve seen a lot of doctors that are involved in projects focused on solving clinical problems. They’re not just in-clinic attending physicians, but they’re also engineers and researchers that collaborate with multiple disciplines and individuals, something that I can see myself doing in the future. I want to be able to bridge the gap between medicine, engineering, and global health so we can create solutions that have a profound impact.
My advice for future students is to find what you are really interested in, and if you are passionate about bioengineering, then don’t worry about the difficulty of the major. I think that’s the main thing. For example, physics was always challenging for me, but that didn’t stop me from going into BIOE, and I was able to overcome doubts on my abilities and gain confidence through this major.”