SWEMag Vol. 5

E W S SOCIETY OF WOMEN ENGINEERS

CORNELL UNIVERSITY | FALL 2019 | ISSUE NO. 5

CONT ENTS PAGE 5,6

ABOUT SWE

PAGE 7,8 CORNELL COFFEE

PAGE 9,10 INTERNSHIP ADVICE

PAGE 11,12 SEMESTER OVERVIEW

PAGE 13,14 CUSAIL INTERVIEW

PAGE 15

WOMEN IN ENGINEERING

PAGE 16 ENGINEERING MEMES

about swe The Cornell Society of Women Engineers was charted on November 9, 1972. Since then, we have grown to be one of the largest student organizations on campus, with over 250 members. Membership for SWE is open to all (male and female) undergraduate and graduate students in engineering and technical fields. Each year, we run numerous programs and events to promote engineering, diversity, career and professional development, academic support, and pre-college education. These include many outreach programs in and around the Ithaca community, various social programs, dinners, luncheons, and over 100 company information sessions.

The Cornell Student Section of the Society of Women Engineers promotes women in Engineering by advocating the importance of diversity and by uniting resources to encourage academic, leadership, professional, and personal excellence for the entire Engineering community of Today and Tomorrow.

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“It’s given me a community of sisters. The monthly meetings and events like the apple picking social have introduced me to other women in engineering and let me not only develop my technical skills through my classes but also have been very empowering personally.”

– Regina Casimiro-Nuñez (’22, Biological Engineering) “I would say that being in SWE has introduced me to a plethora of dedicated and inspirational women who are so passionate about what they are studying that they want to share it with as many people as possible and I think that this has no doubt influenced my time at Cornell!”

– Olivia Goosay (’22, Mechanical Engineering) “I have gained so much by being a part of SWE; friends, professional development, and leadership experience.

Being the Prospective Student Coordinator means that I get to encourage young women to take the path they want, and it’s a position I love because it allows me to reach out to and empower girls in a position I once was in myself.”

– Emily Jaquin (’22, Chemical Engineering) “Even though I’m a new member, SWE has given me the opportunity to be a part of a community of women in STEM where I can connect and interact with people who have similar academic and social interests as me.”

– Sophia Peris (’22, Mechanical Engineering) “SWE definitely introduced me to a community of passionate and focused women, and also opened me up to opportunities that I wouldn’t have found otherwise.”

– Swasti Shree (’22, Mechanical Engineering)

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Cornell Coffee as reviewed by tara khanna

As many coffee lovers know, coffee is not just a drink but also a way of life.

Whether for a caffeine fix or for taste there are many places for engineers to get coffee both on and off-campus. Since we don’t all have time to waste trying to find the perfect cup, here is a shortlist of the highlights of where to get coffee.

café jennie

Mattin’s Cafe

When I first saw this option, I was a little doubtful that the coffee from the Cornell Store would be any good, since in my head the store was always crowded with parents. However, I decided to give it a try and thought it was pretty good. They serve breakfast, lunch, and of course coffee. The brand used by this café is Peet’s Coffee, which is unique for the majority of cafes on Cornell’s campus.

Overall while the store is fairly crowded at certain points of the year, the location is right in the middle of campus. On top of that they accept BRBs and sometimes that is all you need.

If you need a quick cup of coffee while running from one class to the next, Mattins has ready-to-go cups for your fastest caffeine needs. This coffee is wonderful when you plan on spending all your time in Duffield, Philips, Upson, or even Rhodes if you don’t want to step outside into the real world. They have a variety of Starbucks roasted coffee so, while not the fanciest coffee, it is essential for this list.

the cornell store

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Duffield Atrium

"Coffee is not just a drink, but also a way of life."

Gimme! Coffee Gates hall

Another option close to the Engineering quad is Gimme! Coffee, a small chain with locations around Ithaca and in New York City. The coffee itself from this option is filled with flavor and delicious. Despite being on Cornell’s campus, this coffee shop does not accept Big Red Bucks, so while the coffee and location are amazing, it can become a more expensive option.

ithaca coffee company 311 e. green street

While not in Cornell, one of my favorite coffee locations in Ithaca is Ithaca Coffee Company. Just a block east of The Commons, this is the perfect place if you need to get away from campus.

The coffee is very rich and the café has wifi even though it is far from eduroam. On top of that, they have the option of buying their beans to make their coffee yourself.

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Cop the Internship SIMPLE

TIPS

ON

HOW

TO

SECURE

THAT

SUMMER

INTERNSHIP

Start searching The plethora of job listings on LinkedIn, Handshake and other job-searching websites can be overwhelming. Before diving into a rabbit hole of job listings, figure out what type of companies and positions you are interested in. What do you hope to gain from these jobs? How will you contribute to the company? From this, you can narrow down your options by job titles and even location.

Update the resume

Find a mentor or trusted friend to look over and review your resume. Make sure you customize your resume towards the specific position you are applying for. For example, if you are applying to a Research and Development position, you may want to highlight any lab experiences and research projects you have worked on.

ORGANIZE THE APPLICATIONS

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Excel is your best friend. To keep track of all the applications, put all the relevant information (deadlines, required documents, application status) into an Excel sheet. As you apply to different internships, you can color code which applications you have completed and any updates. This will keep you on top of your deadlines and enable you to see an overall schematic of your applications.

network, network, network!

LinkedIn and Handshake are a gold mine for networking with potential employers and companies. Not only will you get information about updates from the companies of interest, you can also discover if they are recruiting on campus. Towards the beginning of each semester during career fair, companies love to host information sessions and conduct on campus interviews, so be on the lookout for these events. Find Cornell alumni who work in the companies you are interested in. Introduce yourself, explain your interest with the company, and ask for advice. By connecting with alumni, you can gain insight into the company’s dynamics and the expectations of their employees.

FUNDING Once you have secured an internship, plan out the logistics: housing and commute. Most companies will provide housing or traveling stipends from the get-go. However, if they do not, there is an abundance of resources to get funding. For example, Cornell offers grants for summer unpaid internships through the Student Assembly Summer Experience Grant or for on campus research through the Engineering Learning Initiatives (ELI) Undergraduate Research Funding.

RELAX Even if you did not get your dream internship, take a deep breath. It is not the end of the world. Instead of despairing, think about what you can do. Take some summer courses to get ahead in your academics, volunteer at local places, and work on any personal projects you have put in the back burner during the school year. Remember that everyone’s path is different.

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through the diverswety As a part of SWEek of Welcome, we had a photo campaign showcasing the diversity in engineering!

Professional Networking Dinner

SWEek of Welcome The year started off with a week packed full of event welcoming back our SWEsters from the summer.

At the welcome picnic, we munched on snacks, made tie-dye t-shirts, and even made some new friends!

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We returned again with the fall Professional Networking Dinner. Over 38 companies, 91 company representatives, and 160 students participated in our biannual night packed with networking!

semester

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Junior Girl Scout's Day

we19 Conference

Over a dozen junior girl scout's came from local troops to learn all about what engineering is!

With hands-on activity and team work, the girls worked on building vehicles driven by balloons!

Our E-board members flew to sunny Anaheim, California to attend SWE's national conference! They attended a career fair, sessions ranging from outreach to ethics, networked, and even met up with our very own alumni in the LA area!

Katherine Gray

Mechanical Engineering '21 CUSail Mechanical Subteam Lead

How is junior year going so far?

Being a Junior in Mechanical Engineering has been challenging but fun. One class I am taking this semester is Mechatronics, a class that is kind of a mix of mechanical and electrical engineering. While at first, I was nervous for this class, I am actually enjoying it a lot more than I thought. It is also relevant to CUSail as we end the semester by building a robot, so I’m learning more about the electrical side of robotics.

Going back, what drew you to originally applying to CUSail?

I did a lot of sailing in high school and was interested in the physics behind sailing as well as how boats are designed and built.

Additionally, I wanted hands-on mechanical engineering experiences outside of a classroom setting. I particularly liked how CUSail has a “startup” culture because the team is very receptive to new ideas and would be willing to take risks in design or alternative manufacturing methods.

What is CUSail currently working on and what is your specific role on the team?

This year, I am the Mechanical Subteam Lead, which I have really enjoyed so far.

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Being in this leadership position, I am responsible for all aspects of the mechanical design and manufacture of the boat, as well as maintaining the team dynamic. This has been incredibly rewarding, and I have learned a lot about team management and the importance of a positive work environment.

This year we are making a lot of changes to our boat. Autonomous sailing is a relatively new field: this means that a lot of our design challenges do not have an existing solution. . We are changing our microcontroller as well as overhauling the entire navigation system. The motor control is also being redesigned. The goal for this semester is to start to manufacture earlier so we can focus on testing and improvement.

What has been one very memorable moment for you on this project team?

Any final thoughts on your experience on CUSail?

There have been many memorable moments, but one that comes to mind was completing the lay-up of the deck and hull last semester. The boat is made of carbon-fiber and there are multiple laborintensive steps to completing the process.

Sanding the mold, spraying it with Duratec and doing the lay-up took many hours, but it was incredibly satisfying when the boat came out of the mold. It was a great bonding moment with the other team members, and I gained invaluable experience working with composites.

I have really improved my technical skills while being on CUSail, including designing using CAD and manufacturing techniques.

I’ve also gained leadership skills, as well as presentation and technical writing experience. Being on CUSail helped me find my current interest in manufacturing engineering, as I love doing hands-on work through building the boat. Overall, my involvement has thoroughly enriched my education as well as helped me form lifelong friendships with other passionate and dedicated engineers. I am so happy that it is a part of my undergraduate experience.

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W o m e n

i n

E n g i n e e r i n g

Charlotte Kiang AEROSPACE ENGINEER AND WRITER

Charlotte Kiang started off at Wellesley College studying humanities. After covering NASA’s launch of the space shuttle Atlantis as a journalism intern in 2011, she became fascinated with the space shuttle program and the space industry. She finished her undergraduate degree by studying and mathematics. She later secured a NASA internship at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. Throughout the internship, she aided in designing a foot sensor to enable astronauts to control their jetpacks without their hands and learned about how to design systems for zero gravity environments.

Upon graduation, Kiang worked at Boeing, where she worked on multiple projects, of which one of her favorites was designing a space toilet for the CST-100 spacecraft. In order to continue working on the technical hardware and design aspects, she studied at Cornell University and earned her master’s degree in biomedical engineering, which gave her the tools to build life-support systems for

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humans in space. While earning her master’s degree, she co-founded the Cornell Microgravity Research Team that participates in a competition to design an asteroid-sampling tool for astronauts.

After graduating from Cornell, she landed a job at SpaceX, where she worked as a mission integration engineer for the crew program. She is in charge of mission management and ensures that the Dragon 2 spacecraft is ready to fly astronauts to space safely and efficiently.

Currently, Kiang works as a freelance contributor at Forbes, covering topics including the future of aviation, astronautics, and technology. She has a Journalism Fellowship with Wogrammer, which supports her goals of increasing the visibility of female scientists and engineers in popular media.

Tas e u En nee n Memes PAGE 16

COPYRIGHT 2019 Society of Women Engineers Cornell University

P U B L I C A T I O N Fall 2019

S T A F F

DIRECTORS: Naseem Dabiran Nicole Wang EDITORS / DESIGNERS: Shefali Janorkar Tara Khanna Michelle Chang Nicole Wang