For two University of Wisconsin-Stout students, communicating within their department and not being afraid to take a chance led to a prestigious NASA research opportunity.
During an intensive 10-week internship program this past summer, UW-Stout students Casandra Baer and Bryan Coddington utilized their classroom knowledge of chemistry, the material sciences and engineering to aid in a NASA research project.
According to Baer, as part of this competitive internship program, she and Coddington researched bonding ceramic to metals for use at high temperatures while exploring creative approaches to lessening residual stress in joints. For NASA, the results helped in the development of subsonic gas turbine engines.
Their work resulted not only in valuable experience in research but also in publication as well. Coddington became the lead author in a paper accepted for the 34th International Conference & Exposition on Advanced Ceramics & Composites, where he will present his paper.
Both students will be submitting papers based on their research to UW-Stout’s Journal of Student Research, according to a statement released Monday by UW-Stout.
“For me, this research gave me a taste of what NASA’s mission is and how I can be part of a bigger project that may change my future,” Baer said, whose work was included in a report for NASA’s Subsonic Rotary Wing Project.
For UW-Stout’s Director of Communications Doug Mell, Coddington and Baer’s experience is one that should encourage others to seek similar opportunities.
“Once students see that these students were able to research for NASA — which is the pinnacle, obviously — it just builds upon itself,” Mell said.
For UW-Madison students wishing to build their own astronomic experiences, ample opportunities are available through the university’s Astronomy Department, according to Snezana Stanimirovic, the department’s undergraduate major adviser.
Those opportunities, Stanimirovic said, include working on UW faculty members’ research projects, fellowships with the Wisconsin Space Grant Consortium, Research Experiences for Undergraduates, and more, many of which involve NASA or its facilities.
For Baer, the NASA research opportunity came from staying in contact with her program adviser, and Stanimirovic recommends the same approach.
“Quite often, students interested in doing research get in touch with me and I talk to colleagues to find an appropriate research project,” she said.
Stanimirovic also cited the Astronomy Department’s website as a source for both on-campus research opportunities and suggestions for applying to national programs such as REU.
The Astronomy Department organizes a get-together to introduce undergraduates to the faculty each year. The goal is to make students more comfortable about stopping by with questions or to ask about research opportunities, Stanimirovic said.
This communicative approach is right in line with Baer’s experiences and her suggestion for finding chances for involvement like hers.
“Stay in contact with your advisers, and if an opportunity arises, take it,” she said.
