Starting in high school, I knew that I wanted to pursue a future in math and science. However, it wasn’t until I really began thinking about applying to college at the end of junior year that I began to consider engineering. After looking into the types of classes that an engineering curriculum required, I was even more attracted to the field.
After visiting, I realized that Cornell would provide an excellent college experience both in and out of the academic realm. I found the student body here to be both passionate and diverse. I think my favorite part of Cornell is the wide range of interests here. There is no shortage of involvement from the students, and each student is able to find his or her own niche.
On campus I am involved in freshman peer advising, which allows me to act as an aid for freshmen making their transition into Cornell and university life. It’s great to have an impact on the new students, as well as to give back to the Cornell Engineering community.
This summer I had the opportunity to participate in a research experience for undergraduates at the University of Nevada-Reno. While there, I wrote data processing scripts to be used to analyze data from a shake table test on a full scale base isolated building happening in August 2011. It was a great experience because in addition to enhancing my computer programming skills, I was also exposed to many aspects of this cutting-edge research. I got to see a little bit of what was going on with several different components of the project. At the end of my experience, I traveled with a group of professors and PhD students to Japan to witness two full days of testing. While there I also did a little more programming and was on one of the teams that inspected the building for non-structural damage after a day of shaking.
After getting back from Japan and starting the fall semester, I realized that I wanted to continue doing research, so I joined the Solar Ovens project team. The project team is working on improving the design of solar ovens that are currently in use in Nicaragua. Using solar energy instead of a wood burning stove makes cooking a far more sustainable practice, and it reduces indoor air pollution which is actually the number one cause of death in many developing countries. I like that Cornell has so many opportunities for students to get involved in projects that have broader impacts. I am also in Engineers for a Sustainable World, which is an international organization with a chapter at Cornell.
Overall, my Cornell experience so far has been excellent, and I’m really looking forward to my next two years here.
Q and A with Bo Rider, "I knew that in CEE I would receive a robust, comprehensive education which would prefer for any type of civil engineering career I wanted to pursue after graduation." Read more about Bo Rider: CEE gives more ways to build a career
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