Prospective Graduate Students

Alexis Vasquez

Hometown: Chicago, Ill 

Undergrad degree/institution: BSE Ga Tech, Electrical Engineering (2021)

Department/Program: CSE, Robotics

Strong STEM background, kind of assumed she would go to graduate school because “I’ve always approached things as, ‘If there’s a next step, I’m going to take it.”

First became aware of graduate school as a thing beyond undergrad when engineering grad students came to work with her 7th grade science class. Was on FIRST robotics team at her high school, pursuing masters here because of the Robotics program. Alexis is accustomed to being the only girl in the room; she’s banking on a masters degree helping her to negate the gender wage gap.

Worries about: Managing the workload.

“I’ve heard from everyone that graduate school is hard.”

Nelson Coleman

Hometown: Grand Rapids, MI

Undergrad degree/institution: University of Michigan, Biomedical Engineering (SUGS student)

Nelson’s parents are public school teachers. Mom teaches math and Dad teaches biology. During his second year of undergrad he landed a job in Nick Kotov’s lab and became fascinated with the idea of implanting medical devices to help manage disease. He could have gotten a job in industry right out of undergrad, comfortably earning more than both of his parents combined, but he hopes that this masters will put him in a better position to bring medical innovations to the market.

Worries About: Getting it all done in a year.

Elizabeth Martin

Hometown: Baltimore, MD

Undergrad degree/institution: Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon

ECE phd student interested in autonomous vehicle research. She got excited about robotics and autonomy while earning undergrad degree at Carnegie Mellon. Liz has a form of dyslexia that makes it difficult to read. She uses a text-to-speech reading app to help her keep up with coursework. She came to Michigan because she heard about Matthew Johnson-Roberson’s work at a conference and wanted to work with him. She’s particularly interested in the implications of autonomous transportation as it relates to mobility for the elderly.

Worries about: Running out of money.

Martell Collins

Hometown: Dearborn, MI

Undergrad degree/institution: Wayne State, Mechanical Eng. (BSE 2012)

Department/Program: ISD, Energy Systems Engineering

Martell is the first in his family to go to graduate school. He has a passion for sustainability—but also feels like he needs to balance that against financial success. He enjoys the r/futurology subreddit, and find most subjects from wind, solar, bio-fuel, energy storage and infrastructure interesting— but he always brings it back to “how will this work, in practicality, in the real world?”

He considered doing a civil and environmental engineering degree in undergrad, but as the first in his family to go to a 4-year-college, he decided that his first responsibility was to get broad degree that would ensure job security. He focused more on getting internships, so while he got he good grades, it was more important for him to secure a job straight out of college. 

As a working professional, he continues to keep up with energy news and wishes he could talk to more people about it. The last book he read was The Grid: The Fraying Wires Between Americans and Our Energy Future, by Gretchen Bakke, and he’s gotten to the point where he both wants and can afford to pivot. He needs to continue working, but worries about going back to school, but he is much more confident — and typically thinks that if he can understand the whole process of going back to school, he can make it an efficient investment. 

Worries about

• Academic challenge — “It’s a competitive program and I’ve been away from school for 6 years. I worry about being able to keep up.” 

• Balancing work with school - spread myself too thin

• The financial costs and benefits of doing so. 

Nick Bacero

Hometown: Parma, Michigan 

Undergrad degree: Computer Science, Michigan State University in 2019

Prospective department/program: ISD Systems Engineering and Design

Age: 32 / Male

Nick a U.S. Army veteran (2005-2009), was a radio/communications security repairer in the Army, stationed at Ft. Benning, Ga. He deployed twice to Afghanistan (9-month tours in 2006 and 2008). After the Army Nick worked as communication electronics tech for a company that contracts with military and other government orgs. He knew he needed additional training for professional advancement and became interested in cybersecurity early in his undergrad. Nick appreciates ability to take classes online because, as an older student with more life experience, he finds 18-year-olds irritatingly entitled. 

Nick is patient and methodical in his approach to tasks. He’s accustomed to navigating giant bureaucracies and has higher security clearance than your average college student because of his military service. He met his partner during undergrad, and they were married last year. Nick is looking forward to finishing school and putting down roots somewhere. He will be going to school full-time, both to get done sooner and because the Post 9/11 GI Bill covers tuition plus a housing stipend.

Worries about: 

• Feeling out of place as an older student and a veteran. 

Kevin Zhang

Hometown: New York, NY

Undergrad degree/institution: University of Michigan, Mechanical Eng. (BSE 2015)

Department/Program: ISD, Energy Systems Engineering

Kevin is the first in his family to go to graduate school. He’s currently working as a Performance Engineer in General Motors’ powertrains division. He’s interested in hybrid battery technology and learned about the Energy Systems Engineering program through a colleague who completed it. Location was an important consideration. In-state tuition and tuition support from his company help make this a reality. A master’s will pave the way to promotion within GM.

Worries about

• Time commitment - "I've heard from colleagues that it's difficult to balance work with school"

• Whether it's worth the investment of time and money