What first interested you about STEM?

I have always been interested in computers and how things work. I built a PC with my uncle in third grade and as early as I could joined my school’s robotics team. In addition, I have always liked the logical side of mathematics and science and have enjoyed exploring cutting-edge innovations.

What’s your favorite part about STEM?

As I have grown older, my passion has evolved from technology alone to incorporating technology within science and medicine. I truly enjoy understanding how the world works and then applying that knowledge to help enrich people’s lives. I also appreciate how science builds upon itself, meaning that concepts from different branches of science help to explain each other.

What attracted you to this STEM program (or school)?

I was attracted to ESAP for many reasons. As Penn is one of my top schools, I wanted a chance to experience Penn Engineering and its amazing faculty before I apply to the university my senior year. While this does count for Penn Engineering credit, I wanted the chance to challenge myself and take a college course in high school, with its incredible rigor and pace. In addition, I wanted to find a program where I could interact with people like me, who were both intelligent but also dedicated. Finally, I especially wanted hands-on experience with nanotechnology. Through this course, I received not only a fantastic intellectual understanding of the principles of nanotechnology but also hands-on lab experience performing nanofabrication.

What was the most exciting moment for you in this program?

I loved every minute of this program, from the lectures to the social events with intelligent, dedicated students to the final research project that served as an application of our knowledge throughout the course. However, the most exciting moment for me by far was performing labs in the cleanroom. I visited Penn with my family the year prior, and we saw the Singh center from the outside. Through ESAP we not only toured the building, but worked daily in their state-of-the-art cleanroom. I always felt energized by simply being in this lab with access to incredible instruments with like-minded peers. The professors were absolutely fantastic, encouraging us to answer “why” certain phenomena occurred, and not just following a procedure. Through this experience, we fabricated many devices and acquired hands-on experience with the techniques introduced in the lectures.

How has this program (or school) affected your future plans?

After going through this program, working with the incredibly helpful and passionate professors, and hearing the tremendous guest lectures from Penn researchers and start-up companies, I am more confident that I want to pursue the field of nanotechnology with an emphasis on bioapplications. In addition, this program made me realize how much I enjoy both research and hands-on lab work and want to explore future opportunities in high school and beyond.

What advice do you have for teens interested in STEM?

Work hard, challenge yourself, and seek out opportunities. These three weeks were absolutely fantastic and I miss going to Singh every day to learn something new. These principles also involve school: don’t simply do the comfortable work, push yourself to accomplish something you didn’t believe you could. Finally, truly find and develop your passion, whether that’s through programs such as ESAP or research opportunities.

What first interested you about STEM?

Ever since I was a small child, I was always fascinated by the way things work. I would often take things apart, examine them, and then put them back together — everything ranging from pens to staplers to my Nintendo Wii console. As I became older and more exposed to STEM, I became obsessed with companies like Apple. Whenever Apple releases a new product, I always try to find videos of people disassembling them, so I can see what went into making it (and compare it to the older versions). This fundamental idea of “how things work” is what truly sparked my interest in STEM (and continues to this day).

What’s your favorite part about STEM?

Probably my favorite part about STEM is failing and failing until you finally succeed. Last year, on my robotics team, I was part of a small subteam who was working on a mechanism to manipulate cargo balls. Did we get it to work the first time? Of course not. Did we get it to work the second time? No! But we as a team did not give up. We as a team kept problem solving, improving, and thinking of new ideas, and it wasn’t until about 4 weeks and 10 versions later where we finally got it to work. And boy, when we finally got it to work, we were so happy! This is just a wonderful feeling that’s so hard to describe unless you experience it yourself, but it’s what brings me back to STEM every single day.

What attracted you to this STEM program (or school)?

When looking around for a summer program in STEM, I really wanted to find something that would not only challenge me intellectually, but also force me to step outside of my comfort zone and explore the world of STEM at the university level. I also wanted to find a place with students like me — a place with highly-motivated, passionate students who would thrive in a rigorous yet social environment and who would become lasting friends. But perhaps the biggest reason why I chose the Nanotechnology program at ESAP was because it was something I just couldn’t do at home. I’ve never been exposed to nanotechnology before, and I really wanted to learn something new. Thus, when I found the ESAP Nanotechnology program, I knew that would be the perfect program for me.

What was the most exciting moment for you in this program?

One of the most exciting moments for me didn’t happen just once, but rather almost everyday: and that is, working on labs the Singh Center cleanroom. Coming into the program, I never thought that we would be allowed to use the equipment, let alone be allowed in the cleanroom! But sure enough, we were, and each and everyday I looked forward to suiting up and working on our labs there. Whether it be synthesizing quantum dots, examining microfluidic channels, or patterning letters the size of 10 microns, it was an incredible experience. The Singh Center is a remarkable place to be.

How has this program (or school) affected your future plans?

This program has affected my future plans in huge ways. After exploring Penn Engineering, I now know I want to go to an engineering-focused university, such as Penn itself. I realized that I really fit perfectly with that kind of culture and environment, and I formed many connections and made a few really good friends during my time at ESAP. But perhaps how ESAP most affected me was through a guest lecture by a professor who worked with nanorobots. Since I love robotics and I love nanotechnology, I was intrigued by the way this lab combined the two. Nanorobotics was a field I had no knowledge about before ESAP, and upon hearing this guest lecture, I now know it is a field I will certainly want to go into.

What advice do you have for teens interested in STEM?

Don’t be afraid to take risks and step outside of your comfort zone. I’ve always been a very shy person, and I was very nervous going to ESAP. But the second I stepped foot onto Penn’s campus, I knew I had found my place, and I know eventually you will too in whatever you do. Don’t ever feel intimidated to ask questions and reach out to older people who are more experienced than you — remember, they were once just like you. And whether it be at ESAP or anywhere else, never limit your curiosity and always let your passions drive you. And after you’ve had an amazing experience, aim to be the one writing a testimonial like this to pass on your advice to others.

What made you decide to apply to ESAP?

Throughout my academic career, I have always been obsessed with topics focused on math and science. Last year, my high school started a new innovative program called STEAMinar. The program provided 9th grade students, who were interested in STEAM-oriented disciplines, a platform to explore them and the opportunity to conduct research. The core topics featured  included computer science, robotics, and engineering. This year-long access and discovery intensified my enthusiasm for engineering, ESAP was the perfect program to expanded upon my knowledge, understanding, and research development skills in biotechnology. The biggest deciding factor in me selecting this program was the ability to work and learn from the actual PENN School of Engineering faculty – this access was priceless and taught me how vested my professors really were in the university’s research and their student’s development. Their deep knowledge, motivation, and guidance said a lot about the promise and commitment PENN makes to its students.

Moreover, ESAP offered a high-level of both academic and college life skill building throughout the program, which enabled me to thrive in my BIOT cohort and as a responsible student living on PENN’s campus.

What did you learn from participating in the program?

How will your experience at ESAP affect your life in the future?

STEM is a powerful tool.  Innovations in the field of STEM often have a direct, immediate, and transformative impact on the society.  My experience at Engineering Summer Academy at Penn (ESAP) showed me the power of engineering and opened a whole new door of network engineering for me.  I first learned about ESAP from a flyer sent to my mailbox.  After some research, I applied for this three-week engineering program and chose Engineering Complex Network (NETS) as my course.  To be honest, I had never heard of network engineering before I attended ESAP, and my curiosity was partially the reason I chose NETS.  The other half of the reason is that I liked the sound of being in charge of a huge complex network, be it a social network or a power grid.

Over the three weeks, I learned a lot about the structures and dynamics of a network, yet nothing beats the thrill of the final project.  Our final project is based on a hypothetical scenario.  Imagine your company has launched a new product and can give out a certain number of free products to certain consumers as free trial.  Once they fall in love with your new product, they will start telling others about your product, and start a chain effect.  Eventually more and more people will be willing to buy your product.  The question is, given a social network, to whom should you give the free products to maximize your marketing effect?  With my new learned knowledge about Matlab, I used the power of computer to help me analyze a network of hundreds of nodes and target the ones that can spread the word about our product the most.  I tried different algorithms and measures for centrality.  Each time, just staring at the monitor waiting for the result, I could feel my heart pumping.  Then, when the result actually comes out, be it good or bad, it was a relief.  From the past trials, new ideas emerged and flashed through my mind.  It was truly exhilarating.

You might be thinking “Marketing? That is a rather lame way of using STEM power” or “That sounds like using your power to manipulate people.”  But network engineering goes way beyond marketing.  It can tell us many answers such as how to stop an epidemic, where the vulnerabilities are in a power grid or a computer network, and how to manage a traffic system to minimize the traffic jam.  In addition, with the development of the internet of things, more and more complex networks will emerge.  By then, it is up for the network engineers to build and improve those networks.

Thus, after ESAP, I decided to major in network engineering or information system.  My experience at ESAP made me pay more attention to the networks and thus envision a future of networks.

My advice?  Just like for everything in life, always try new things.  Passion will be a crucial part if you want a career in STEM, and often times you just have to keep trying new things to find your true passion.  Nonetheless, once you choose your path, keep going no matter what.  March towards that future you envision as a STEM student and do not stop.

What first interested you about STEM?

The minute I laid my eyes on a computer I knew I would pursue a career in computer science in the future. While growing up with two computer engineers as parents may have influenced me slightly towards this field, I took the initiative to begin nurturing this passion for computers. However, one moment in my life really made me fall in love with STEM. Using technology to help people with special needs disorders was a concept beyond my grasp in elementary school. However, as I became older, I began to think more and more about the possibility of incorporating technology in various diseases. In eighth grade specifically, my robotics team and I created a product to help families with children with autism. While the product is a fairly simple idea, my passion for HCI began right there.

What attracted you to this STEM program (or school)?

The ESAP Computer Science program involved programming solutions to difficult problems as well as using the knowledge we had gained to get through a scavenger hunt. All of these aspects caught my attention as well as the ability to experience life at Penn. I ended up being very challenged by the problems the professor gave me. In addition, I was pleasantly surprised when the professor incorporated cryptography into the curriculum as I had just taken a course on various encryption techniques.

What was the most exciting moment for you in this program (or school year)?

I particularly enjoyed the speech given by a professor in the bioengineering field. The multitude of interesting topics he presented such as contacts that test the sugar levels of diabetic people were prevalent ideas in the field of HCI. The seminar was informative and engaging; in fact, I even went to talk to the professor after the seminar and had a hearty discussion of HCI.

How has this program (or school) affected your future plans?

This program has opened up many doors for me such as contacts with professors, college students, and students my own age with similar interests. I plan to use these contacts in the future as I continue my journey through the field of computer science and begin to create products of my own.

What advice do you have for teens interested in STEM?

STEM involves a wide variety of topics, and many of the fields are intertwined. While some courses may not seem applicable to the field you are interested in, I would suggest taking the class. In addition, never be afraid to pitch your ideas to those willing to hear them because there are many people out there who are glad to help.

What first interested you about STEM?

My grandfather was an electrical engineer when he was young. So when I was a child, I saw him repair different electrical equipment, such as an electric kettle, television, and oven in the home. As a child, I was quite curious and wondered how those electronic boards and circuits resulted in the functioning of the equipment. That was the start of my interest in STEM.

What’s your favorite part about STEM?

The part in engineering that I like the most is that I can utilize the knowledge to actually construct something that is useful. For example, in the robotics club in my high school, we built a robot that can lift boxes and carry them to certain areas. Making something new and finally seeing the design become a real thing that I can touch is my favorite part of engineering.

What attracted you to this STEM program (or school)?

There were mainly two reasons that made me decide to participate in the ESAP program. The first reason is that ESAP is a quite selective program and all the admitted students do pretty well in their school studies and have strong academic skills. I want to challenge myself and hope to meet more excellent and interesting people, so I chose this program. Moreover, the location of this program also attracted me. It is held at the University of Pennsylvania, a famous member of the Ivy League. It is such a great school with a serious academic atmosphere, while maintaining the beautiful and natural scenes within the campus. It has also had an esteemed academic reputation throughout its long history. These factors also motivated me to apply to ESAP.What was the most exciting moment for you in this program (or school year)?

The most exciting moment was when we finally finished our final projects and presented them to our classmates and their parents. It was a computer game I created named “Asteroid” where players control a spaceship to destroy the asteroids and kill the boss. I spent several days and nights designing the behavior of the asteroids, the spaceship, the bullets and the boss. I was satisfied with my work and proudly showed it to the audience. That was quite exciting!

How has this program (or school) affected your future plans?

This great program gave me a chance to learn more about computer science. In this program I discovered that computer science is a science of computing, not just programming, and it has many applications, such as data analysis, data structure, and making computer games. At the ESAP I found that computer science really intrigues me. Reading the codes can be so enjoyable and seeing the correct outputs on the screen provide me with great satisfaction. Therefore, after the program I decided to major in computer science and choose programming as my future career.

What advice do you have for teens interested in STEM?

You are really able to use your STEM knowledge to create something fun. Don’t be afraid to use your hands and your brain to build some new things. Applying the knowledge is the best way to learn STEM.

What made you decide to apply to ESAP?

What did you learn from participating in the program?

How will your experience at ESAP affect your life in the future?

What made you decide to apply to ESAP?

What did you learn from participating in the program?

How will your experience at ESAP affect your life in the future?

Why did you decide to participate in an overnight summer program? 

Since I was a senior, I wanted to have an experience that reflected how life in college will be like. One that would enrich me academically, present to me all the academic challenges of college and allow me to have full experience of campus life.How did you research summer programs and decide which program was right for you?
I wanted a summer program that would allow me to gain knowledge in the field of engineering and acquire this through world-class, erudite professors. I also wanted it to be on a campus that would make my first trip to the US amazing! So through my research on the internet and advice from my university counsellor and my mentor, I opted for ESAP for it provided all that I wanted in a summer camp.

What did you do in your summer program?

Most of the time was spent in the lab (morning sessions) or in the lecture halls (afternoon sessions). Evenings were reserved as free time and were mostly used for homework or research for our final paper.  We occasionally had field trips to Penn’s nanotech facilities such as the Singh Center and others. We also had fun outings to the beach, to the many restaurants on campus, and to Six Flags. The three weeks culminated with a beautiful graduation ceremony.

What did you learn from participating in the program?

The program taught me a lot academically; I learned more about nanotechnology and its real life applications which helped me finally decided on what career path I wanted to pursue. I had never written a lab report or research paper before but through the program I was able to do this. I got the opportunity to discuss current affairs with my age mates from all over the globe and learn from their unique perspectives. And as an international student, I experienced how life in college abroad will be like and made lifelong friendships with people from all corners of the globe.

How will this summer program affect your life in the future?

In this program I had the opportunity to grow as a person and slowly fit into the skin of the college student I wanted to be. I made a lot of mistakes, be it in my academics and in my social life but now that I know what went wrong, I will correct them as I go on to college and in life as a whole.

Why did you decide to participate in an overnight summer program?

I had been talking to my guidance counselor about what to do in the summer and she had recommended I do an overnight program because it would give me a feel of what staying on a college campus was like. I also liked the idea of being on my own for a couple of weeks.

How did you research summer programs and decide which program was right for you?

I just did a Google search of engineering programs in the summer. My guidance counselor helped a lot too because she had known of many that previous students had attended. I had visited UPenn earlier in the year and really liked the area, so when I saw it had a good summer program, I decided to apply. I specifically picked the robotics program because even though I had studied engineering in my high school, I had not had the chance to make a robot and was really interested in making one over the summer.

What did you do in your summer program?

For the first week, we learned a lot about electrical components, 3D-CAD modeling, coding as well as how to operate some of the machinery in the lab. The first week concluded with us making a robot that could scan for a dark line on the ground and follow it. The next two weeks we used the skills we had learned to do a final project in groups of three. The final project was a robot that could traverse through a maze autonomously, and then lock on to a target and fire a projectile at it.

What did you learn from participating in the program?

I learned many useful skills in the program such as how to program, and how to operate a LaserJet, but the main thing I learned from the program is that sometimes not everything works like you wanted it to and you cannot freak out about it. Many times our robot would do nothing when we thought we had successfully programmed it to move only to find smoke coming out from the robot. This was very frustrating at the time, but it made me learn that building a robot does not come easy. It was very hard building the robot; some days we would not leave the lab until late into the night when our RTAs kicked us out, but eventually, we got the robot to work (sort of), and this left me with a great sense of accomplishment.

How will this summer program affect your life in the future?

In the future, hopefully I will be an engineer, although I am not sure if robotics will be what I specialize in. Nonetheless this program has taught me important skills to learn that will affect my success in the future. I work better in groups, know more about the field of engineering, and have a better idea of what it takes to be an engineer because of this program. I have a feeling that after learning everything I did from the program, that I will be a successful engineer one day.

Why did you decide to participate in an overnight summer program?

I decided to participate in an academic program last summer because I wanted to make the most out of my summer. I hoped to learn something new and interesting that could help me in the future and generally add to my knowledge. Often the people that you meet during summer camps and courses are some of the most fascinating people that you will encounter anywhere. Many come from places far different than those that I am familiar with and have amazing stories to share. Specifically, I wanted to go to an overnight program because in an overnight program, I was able to fully dedicate myself to a specific program of study. In addition to this I got a feel for college. Originally, I reached the idea of going to a summer program from one of my robotics mentors, who recommended the Engineering Summer Academy at Penn, ESAP, to me, saying that he thought I would like and learn a lot from it, which I did.How did you research summer programs and decide which program was right for you?

Mainly, I researched summer programs by searching on the internet and looking over their websites. I have always been very interested in engineering, specifically mechanical engineering, and I wanted to find a program in which I could strengthen these skills. I decided that I wanted to attend the Engineering Summer Academy at Penn, ESAP, in Robotics because I have always loved a challenge and based on the ESAP website, the program looked difficult but also like I could handle it. Additionally, one of my friends attended the program the year before me, and he told me that it was an amazing experience, in which you get to meet many diverse kinds of people. I have always loved being exposed to people that are different than me and hearing about their views as well as ideas. Finally, as I am from Philadelphia, I have always enjoyed the feeling I get from walking on Penn’s campus, especially Locust Walk. Therefore, the Engineering Summer Academy at Penn seemed like the best option of summer program for me.

What did you do in your summer program?

In the Engineering Summer Academy at Penn Robotics program, most days began with a short lecture from Professor Fiene. Each was about a single aspect of engineering, such as programming, mechanical design, or electronics. They were all intriguing and left me wanting to learn more. Following the lectures, we had a lab for the rest on the day, with a break for lunch and a break for dinner. In the labs, we experimented with circuits, computer aided design (CAD), and programming, for example. Each day was very challenging, and we stayed up late working on projects and assignments (because we wanted to, of course). Towards the end of the program, we had a competition called “Robotanks” in which groups of three students worked to design, build, and program their own robots to compete in a partially autonomous, partially remote controlled game. We labored all hours on these robots, staying as late as we were allowed, coming in as early as possible in the mornings, and even eating our lunches and dinners while CADing. This, I must say, was my favorite part of the program–devoting my efforts towards one final project was very enjoyable and also rewarding on competition day.

What did you learn from participating in the program?

Through participating in the program, I became familiar with programming in C, since before coming to the program I had very little experience with C. Also, I learned about how electrical systems work, how to build fairly complicated ones, and how to make calculations within them. Furthermore, I began to comprehend how to better gather my ideas together, apply teamwork, and come up with a final working product that solves a problem. Finally, I started to get a feeling for what living at college might be like: being more independent, sharing a room with other students, and effectively managing my time.

How will this summer program affect your life in the future?

The Engineering Summer Academy at Penn, ESAP, Robotics program has helped to ensure me that I would like to study engineering in college because I loved every second of the course. I continue to talk to the people I met in the program on a daily basis, and it is great knowing that I have a supportive community of friends who are also interested in science, technology, engineering, and math from around the world. The skills that I learned in the program, relating to teamwork, leadership, and time management, for example, will help my on a daily basis. The new ways of solving problems and mechanical engineering abilities that I became familiar with during the program will help me on my robotics team and throughout my life. The experiences that I gained are more valuable than words can describe, and I will never forget the time I spent at the ESAP Robotics program.