VCU College of Engineering

Sophie Kothe, a recent recipient of the Department of Defense (DoD) Science, Mathematics and Research for Transformation (SMART) scholarship, is working towards making an impact in the future of biomedical engineering. 🔬🧪 Read more: https://bit.ly/3sapaTy

Our alumni are doing incredible things! Not only is Corey Gates a scientist and project lead for the Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division https://www.facebook.com/NAVSEA/, he is doing impactful work within the community. His work with local non-profit PatchworkRVA continues to provide inspiration and resources to LGBTQ+ folks across the region. Read more: https://bit.ly/44bFL6p

Join us for a career fair tomorrow, September 20, at the VCU Engineering Research Building. Follow and on Instagram for info and to share your experience. Engineering students, please register on Handshake. Read more: https://bit.ly/3sWJkQZ

T-minus four days until the engineering fall career fair on September 20. Are you ready?

(✅) Professional clothing ready
(✅) Resume crafted and proofed
(✅) Elevator pitch written and practiced

You got this!

Follow and on Instagram for info and to share your experience. Engineering students, please register on Handshake. Read more: https://bit.ly/3CYIg2h

Our graduates are in demand! On September 20, we’ll be hosting 103 companies at our fall career fair. Follow and on Instagram for info and to share your experience. Engineering students, please register on Handshake. MORE: https://bit.ly/45P99RB

Have you started preparing for the career fair? These students have!⭐

Today, career services hosted a prepare for the career fair workshop, sponsored by Altria, giving students tips and pointers on how to get the most out of this semester’s career fair. Check out career services' pre-career fair prep events! Read more: https://bit.ly/463iQwd

The best way to beat the summer heat is in the lab! 🏖️ Undergraduate students from universities across the country have come to VCU to participate in the Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) hosted by the College of Engineering, ranging in topics from developing complex pharmaceutical products to natural language processing. Read more: https://bit.ly/45yRb5o

Mechanical engineering undergraduate Joseph Lee was recently awarded with the Department of Defense (DoD) Science, Mathematics and Research for Transformation (SMART) scholarship. His passion for innovation and continuous curiosity for the way things work are what propelled him to STEM success. 🔬🧪 Read more: https://bit.ly/440Vk0N

Researchers at the College of Engineering are using cutting-edge technology to transform the way we train, teach and treat in the real world. Read more about how virtual reality is being used at VCU: https://bit.ly/43sO51z.

VCU TechTransfer and Ventures is fostering an ecosystem where innovation thrives! 💡 This team of licensing professionals collaborate with inventors to commercialize university inventions to serve the public. Sarcogenics, a startup led by Michael McClure, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, is just one example of the important work being done for the tech industry. Read more: https://bit.ly/3qrOnrT

Tara Ram Mohan’s passion for STEM led her to work in the BEST (Bone Engineering Science Technology🦴) Lab at the College of Engineering. A computer science degree was one of three majors she earned at VCU where her participation in competitions, student organizations and internships have positioned her for success after graduation.🎓 Read more about Ram Mohan’s journey: https://bit.ly/3DiSXvx.

What a fantastic start to the school year! 🎉🎓 We welcomed everyone to the College of Engineering's annual welcome back recess event, and it was a blast!

☑️ Our new dean, faculty, and staff met the newest engineering and computer science students. 🤝
☑️ Students connected with members of the engineering student organizations 👏
☑️ And we indulged in scrumptious treats. 🍦

Cheers to memories made and a remarkable year ahead! 🚀
Check out the photo gallery 📸 https://bit.ly/3sqwUAE

VCU Engineering brought the excitement to programming yet again, as the annual High School Programming Contest ended in success for students. Students from high schools across the state put their Java and Python skills to the test at VCU, competing to win first place and prove their programming prowess. Congratulations to the winning team from Thomas Jefferson High School for technology.👏 Read more: https://bit.ly/3KsnJGk

Milos Manic, Ph.D., computer science professor, was part of a team that developed a VR simulator to train surgeons performing sling implantation surgeries. Using haptic feedback, the device mimics the resistance a surgeon feels when pushing into human tissue. Read more: https://bit.ly/3qZrprT.

Summer internships may be ending, but our students aren’t slowing down! With the help of VCU’s Internship Funding Program, undergrad Alyssa Cadua spent the summer digitizing pipe blueprints for a nuclear plant with Dominion Energy. This experience enlightened her to the potential for a future of clean, nuclear energy. Read more: https://bit.ly/3QzgnV7

James Ferri, Ph.D., has been elected Chair-Elect of the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Technology & Education (NIPTE) faculty, highlighting VCU’s position as a front-runner in the advanced pharmaceutical manufacturing space. Ferri assumed the role of Chair-Elect June 1st, continuing the NIPTE’s mission to ensure the quality, safety, and accessibility of manufactured pharmaceuticals. Read more: https://bit.ly/3qdlJKY

Undergraduate Justin Turnage and James Ferri, Ph.D., chemical and life science engineering professor and associate chair, apply continuous pharmaceutical manufacturing techniques to liquid drug formations, like albuterol, in order to improve the medication’s quality while reducing cost to make it more accessible. Read more: https://bit.ly/46kfzc7.

Chemical and Life Science Engineering major Gwendolyn Verity recently participated in the NASA Student Airborne Research Program - SARP where attendees received an experience similar to what they would get as NASA scientists.🚀 The program was hosted at the VCU Rice Rivers Center. Read more: https://bit.ly/44GQmYb.

Irfan Ahmed, Ph.D., associate professor of computer science, leads Department of Homeland Security research working to protect nuclear plants, dams and other critical infrastructure. Read more: https://bit.ly/3NysShJ.

We're extending a warm welcome to our newest VCU Engineer, Azim Eskandarian, DSc, as he starts his role as the dean at the College of Engineering. 👏😎 Welcome to the RAMily! 🎉

Congratulations to Milos Manic, Ph.D., professor of computer science, who was elected by the National Academy of Inventors to the rank of senior member.👏👍 The honor recognizes his work in artificial intelligence for cybersecurity, energy efficiency and hard drive disk arrays, among other projects. Read more: https://bit.ly/43zgeUG.

Congratulations to the impressive students who participated in the STARS Summer Challenge!✨

Local high school students spent time this summer learning about data science in an engaging and collaborative setting. This week they wrapped up the program with some impressive final presentations and some yummy pizza to go along with them.

See here for more fun photos from the event: https://bit.ly/3OfZSe0 📸

Our VCU STAR Summer Scholars displayed impressive bowling skills, but what touched our hearts the most was how they embraced each other as friends, transcending backgrounds and experiences.🎳 Once again, the program has proven that friendship knows no boundaries and true unity lies in diversity. 🤗❤️

Huge thanks to Bank of America for their unwavering support and belief in the potential of these bright young scholars.🏆 Your partnership with VCU has transformed dreams into realities, and we're honored to be a part of this remarkable journey!

📷 Enjoy the event photo gallery here: https://bit.ly/3Q6YM6Q.

Last summer, Richmond Community High School student Inayah O’Neil won best presentation during the ‘STARS’ Summer Challenge. This summer, not only is she a peer mentor for the program, but an incoming freshman with VCU’s College of Engineering. O’Neil’s story is an empowering example of what students can accomplish when given the opportunity to explore their interest in STEM. Read more: https://bit.ly/3DiA3EW.

Grit and determination set the course for Class of 2023 graduate Sierra Tutwiler. As a first-generation college grad with double major in physics and mechanical engineering, she directs her passion for science and research into power generation. Read more: https://bit.ly/42gZdPg.

Class of 2023: Sierra Tutwiler puts her energy into energy First-generation college grad, a double major in physics and mechanical engineering, directs her passion for science and research into power.

High school students in Richmond experienced an immersive Alteryx Escape Room adventure as part of the VCU STARS Summer Challenge. Guided by Alteryx training, they raced against time to find a stolen race car at the F1 Grand Prix, using analytics and teamwork to solve mind-bending puzzles.

Supported by Alteryx SparkED and Bank of America, this event made STEM education engaging and fun, igniting the students' passion for data science. With the help of Richmond Alteryx user group volunteers as "pit crew" members, they explored endless possibilities in data analytics. https://bit.ly/3pQPLE7

Mechanical engineering student Mustafa Tewfig recently completed a co-op for BMW test driving prototype vehicles and working as a technician. Unlike a traditional internship, VCU co-ops offer hands-on engineering experience at a paid, full-time job in place of a normal academic semester. Students continue to be enrolled with the College of Engineering, but embark on real-world learning experiences instead of taking classes. Read more about Mustafa’s experience: https://bit.ly/3DcVfMv

06212023 Mechanical engineering undergraduate applies his knowledge at BMW - Engineering - Virginia Commonwealth University Growing up in Northern Virginia, Mustafa Tewfig seemed to always be around tools and construction equipment. In that environment, a love of cars flourished and opened the door to a future career in the automobile industry.

VCU Engineering’s Ram Rocketry club competed at Battle of the Rockets for a second year in a row this past April, participating in the deployable payload sensor event. Throughout the competition, multiple students earned their Tripoli high-powered rocketry certification. Competitions like Battle of the Rockets allow students to further engage with the burgeoning aerospace community while making key connections with both industry professionals and peers alike. Read more: https://bit.ly/3O8UdYr.

🌟 Welcome to VCU Engineering! 🎉🎓 We're thrilled to have many of our new students join us at Orientation as they embark on this incredible journey to become engineers. 🔧
We welcomed students and parents with VCU Engineering goody bags, packed with all the essentials they'll need for their engineering adventures. 🎒✨
Ryan, pictured with his mom Debbie, is pursuing his passion in electrical engineering and Dmarion, who shared lunch with his mom, Demetrius, will work toward his degree in mechanical engineering. 🤝

🌟 Calling all Engineers and Software Developers! 🌟

Are you an alumnus or friend of VCU College of Engineering? We need your expertise and guidance to shape the next generation of engineering talent!

Our goal is to mentor over 450 engineering students this year with minimal impact on your time and incredible results for our students.

Commit to one hour (at 10am, 11am, 1pm, 2pm, or 3pm) on each of the following days:
Monday, Sept. 25 (virtual)
Monday, Oct. 16 (virtual)
Monday, Nov. 13 (virtual)

Please sign up now for the fall, and see more details here:

Mentoring Program - Engineering - Virginia Commonwealth University Engineers and Software Developers who are alumni or friends of the college are invited to help develop career-ready engineering talent. Our goal is to mentor over 450 engineering students this year with minimal impact on your time and incredible results for our students. 

Our ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers) students are unrivaled! Their hovercraft cruised to a first-place finish at the ASME IAM3D challenge. Read more: https://bit.ly/3Jq5oZW.

Undergraduates worked with Christina Tang, Ph.D., associate professor of chemical and life science engineering, on a National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded project to investigate how charged mesh collector plates control deposition of electrospun fibers. Read more: https://bit.ly/3JiJfg4.

Every summer the College of Engineering opens its doors to middle and high school students as we conduct educational and FUN camps and outreach programs. 🌞🏫🚀 Our computer science department welcomed a diverse group of forty middle and early high school students for five action-packed days! From cracking codes to unleashing their inner hacker, they explored online safety, privacy, HTML programming, Linux administration, and even digital forensics! 💡🔍

Kudos to the GenCyber team for making this happen, especially Irfan Ahmed, PhD. and Ahmet Sonmez, Ph.D., associate professors of computer science, our eight full-time undergrad TAs, Komil Chaghtai, Tahshon Holmes, Trae Evans, Prakash Chatlani, Juan Parada, Yasmine Alhumoud, Ryan Wolfe, and Akshara Rajesh. Behind-the-scenes support was provided by our computer science admin, Hazel Germain and our IT department's Travis Greene.👏

Lastly, thanks to the National Security Agency (NSA) for their generous funding.

Congratulations to our hard-working graduate students, who go above and beyond to make sure their students succeed while also excelling in research that benefits VCU Engineering and the surrounding community! Read more: https://bit.ly/3Ph2w56.

Lukasz Kurgan, Ph.D., the Robert J. Mattauch Professor and Associate Chair of VCU's Department of Computer Science, was recently inducted into the European Academy of Sciences and Arts. His work combines bioinformatics, data science, machine learning, statistics, molecular biology and biophysics, paving the way for groundbreaking discoveries. Read more: https://bit.ly/4670Wcd.

Congratulations to Barbara D. Boyan, Ph.D., Institute for Engineering and Medicine executive director! She was among the top female scientists, both nationally and globally in 2022, recognized by Research.com. Read more: https://bit.ly/45Q5ROt.

Surf’s up for sustainability! 🏄 Studying how corals heal helps Nastassja Lewinski, Ph.D., associate professor of chemical and life science engineering, find new ways to preserve these vital aquatic ecosystems. Read more: https://bit.ly/3CB0XHG.

Congratulations to Gabriella Daire, a junior at Virginia Commonwealth University’s Honors College, for being selected as a recipient of the prestigious Goldwater Scholarship for undergraduate students in STEM fields. Daire is studying biology and will investigate disuse-induced bone loss within the context of cellular senescence under the guidance of the VCU Engineering's Henry Donahue, Ph.D., biomedical engineering department chair. Read more: https://bit.ly/3LIlMoQ.

04192023 VCU undergraduate earns Goldwater Scholarship - Engineering - Virginia Commonwealth University Gabriella Daire, a junior in the Virginia Commonwealth University Honors College who studies biology in the College of Humanities and Sciences, has been selected as a recipient of the Goldwater Scholarship, a prestigious national honor for undergraduate students in STEM fields.

Priscilla Hwang, Ph.D., biomedical engineering assistant professor, works with Washington University in St. Louis researchers to continue studying microenvironments cancer cells live in and their migration to different parts of the body, funded by the National Cancer Institute. Read more: https://bit.ly/45oqeCp.