Michelle Liem

• What does being a First-Generation College Graduate mean to you?

Being a First-Generation College Graduate means that I’ve overcome, I’ve succeeded, but most of all, that I’ve broadened my world. These past 4 years have been the most challenging years of my life, as I struggled to adjust to living on my own, making new friends in a university with none of my friends from home, while also dealing with difficult university classes. Despite this, I’ve not only managed to succeed in expanding my academic knowledge and technical skills, but I’ve also expanded my professional network, became an executive board member of a student organization in college, in addition to finding new life-long friends.

• What is your proudest moment from your time at UCSD?

My proudest moment from my time at UCSD actually didn’t even occur physically at UCSD. Instead, it was during my UCSD study abroad trip to Paris, France. That was the first time I had ever traveled alone, along with the added stress of completing coursework. I planned my own weekend trips to different countries, such as the Netherlands, Britain, and Switzerland. I felt so proud of my independence and it marked a turning point in my life on how I reacted to challenges. Since travelling and tourism is currently unsafe due to the pandemic, I am so thankful to the UCSD Study Abroad Department for giving me that experience during college.

• Who are the family members, friends or loved ones who have been most influential throughout your college journey? Are there any words of gratitude you would like to share with them?

My friends, family and EWH family have been so important and influential to me throughout my college journey. The encouragement from my friends from home and the support from my friends at UCSD gave me the strength to work hard and succeed in my difficult classes. I am thankful to my EWH family that gave me the opportunity to jump into engineering projects early and develop an interest in global health that changed my perspective of the world around me. Lastly, I’d like to thank my mom and dad, who worked so hard to make sure I stayed in school and encouraged me even though I was disappointed in my first quarter that my university grades weren’t as good as my high school grades. My degree is dedicated to you, mom and dad!

• Who are the staff, faculty or mentors who have been most influential throughout your college journey? Are there any words of gratitude you would like to share with them?

In my final senior year, I’d like to thank Melissa, my senior design mentor, for guiding me and my team in our senior design project and supporting me in my professional development. Outside of her tremendous assistance in my senior design project, I’d really like to thank her for all the support she gave me when I was confused about my post-graduation plans and hesitant about my future goals.

• What do you plan or hope to do after graduating?

In the short-term, I’m planning on working either at my current lab position or going into a manufacturing engineer position. In the long-term, I’d like to go become a design engineer for medical implants or prosthetics.

Campus Affiliations

Campus Involvement

• Project Manager, Engineering World Health

• Member, Circle K International

• Subteam Lead, Global TIES

Cultural and Resource Centers

• Women's Center