So it’s understandable that senior chemical engineering major Andrea Ramsey was thrilled to have been hired as a chemical engineer at Eastman Chemical…in November—more than six months before she was scheduled to graduate from UK! “It was fantastic to know I had the job and wouldn’t be competing with anyone. After that, all I had to do was focus on finishing my undergraduate degree,” she beams. Her employment with the Kingsport, TN based company will begin shortly after graduation.

Andrea owes her employment to the College of Engineering’s Cooperative Education Program—also known as Co-op. Through the Co-op program, Andrea experienced three different rotations at Eastman Chemical (spring and fall of 2010 and the summer of 2011), learning how to integrate her undergraduate studies in chemical engineering with company projects and also learning valuable skills not necessarily taught in the classroom, such as sizing a valve. In addition, her Co-op experience allowed her to discover what she did not like—for example, the business side of chemical engineering—which will enable to her to make better career decisions in the future.

“Participating in Co-op required I add an extra year to my degree, but I absolutely loved the Co-op experience and do not regret the extra year,” she said. Her time at Eastman Chemical certainly gave her employer a good idea of the caliber of engineer they would be hiring as well.

What kind of employee will Eastman put to work this summer? Ambitious is a good word to start with when describing Andrea. Consider that she currently holds four different positions in student organizations related to engineering. She is the President of the Kentucky Society of Professional Engineers, Vice-President of Tau Beta Pi, Vice-President of Omega Chi Epsilon and Spring Banquet Director for the Society of Women Engineers. Obviously, she cites her biggest challenge as managing her time and ensuring her studies don’t slip.

Andrea credits Dr. Doug Kalika with offering some of the best classes she has taken thus far. “What I like about Dr. Kalika is that you can never go into his office and say, ‘I don’t understand this.’ If you do, he won’t help you. You have to have a question and show that you’ve really thought about it. If you do that, he will stick with you until you understand. He doesn’t baby anyone.”

Dr. Jeffrey Seay, who is a chemical engineering professor at UK’s Extension Campus in Paducah, worked with Andrea on a research project that involved developing simulation models for biomass conversion processes. “I was immediately impressed with Andrea’s intelligence and work ethic,” he recalls. “Her contributions led to a peer reviewed paper and the chance to present her research at the 2nd International Symposium on Sustainable Process and Product Engineering, in Hangzhou, China, where she was awarded the Best Undergraduate Research Award. It was certainly a pleasure to work with Andrea, and I have no doubt that she has a very bright future ahead of her.”

As Andrea finishes her final semester at UK, she looks back on the past four and a half years and knows chemical engineering was the right choice for her. “Chemical engineering is so multi-faceted,” she reflects. “I’m glad to be going into industry, but I could also pursue research. Someone else might be interested in technical sales, since business people doing technical sales are often former chemical engineers. A chemical engineering degree is a great avenue for all kinds of interests.”

An instructor at UK for 24 years, Kimberly Ward Anderson, Ph.D. believes that “an outstanding teacher goes beyond the classroom setting and provides positive mentoring in many different ways. In my years of teaching at UK, I have not only taught graduate and undergraduate courses, but have also engaged students in learning by providing opportunities for them to participate in independent research activities. My overall goal as an instructor is to engage each and every student in active learning and to instill the confidence that they need to function as independent engineers and scientists.”

In April, Dr. Anderson was selected as the 2011 recipient of the Henry Mason Lutes Award for Excellence in Teaching. The annual award was established to recognize and reward outstanding teaching accomplishments. Recipients of the award are expected not only to be outstanding teachers, but individuals who are, or can become, role models for other faculty. Recipients must also have exhibited excellent teaching over a sustained period of time, have exhibited imagination and exceptional dedication to student needs, and demonstrated the ability to challenge and inspire students.

In letters of support, former undergraduate student Kevin Baldridge wrote “Dr. Anderson is clear about what she expects and provides the instruction necessary to understand the importance of assignments. In addition, the assignments she gives are imaginative in their real world applicability.” Another former student, Jenna Shapiro, wrote, “As a senior in chemical engineering, I have had the privilege of having Dr. Anderson as a teacher for three of my undergraduate courses. Additionally, she has served as my research advisor since I began research during my senior year of high school. Because of my initial research experiences in Dr. Anderson’s lab, I became a chemical engineering major. I credit much of my success in my undergraduate career to her guidance and dedication, both as a teacher and advisor.”

A highly decorated professional, Dr. Anderson was awarded the National Science Foundation Presidential Young Investigator Award in 1991, the Excellence Award in Undergraduate Education from the University of Kentucky in 1991, the National Institutes of Health Shannon Award in 1992, the Gill Eminent Professorship at UK in 2002, the Sarah Bennett Holmes Award for promoting women students in the UK College of Engineering, the UK Research Professorship Award in 2010 and was named the Outstanding Teacher in Chemical Engineering in 2011.

Dr. Anderson’s areas of research specialization include rheological properties of cell membranes including adhesion and deformation properties, biofunctional membranes and enzyme immobilization, biocompatible surfaces, nanocomposite hydrogels, bioluminescence, cell-based biosensors, biofouling of surfaces and cancer detection and treatment. She earned a B.S. in chemical engineering from Youngstown State University and received her Ph.D. in chemical engineering/biomedical engineering, as well as a Postdoctorate Fellow in bioengineering, from Carnegie Mellon University.

When Paritosh Wattamwar began studying at the University of Kentucky he had a goal in mind and took every step in the right direction to get there.

“When I joined the department, I knew that I wanted to go into the industry after my Ph.D. I believe that guidance from Dr. Dziubla (my advisor) and other faculty members has helped me towards the career path of my choice,” he says.

However, that doesn’t mean the trek has been easy. For Wattamar, “new experiences” doesn’t even begin to define his time at the College of Engineering.

“Apart from all the technical knowledge and skills I have learned at UK, the graduate chemical engineering program has helped me improve my leadership skills, especially the collaborative nature of research in Chemical Engineering department and opportunity to mentor several undergraduate students in their research,” says Wattamar.

But skills and leadership aren’t the only things Wattamar is learning in the graduate program. In fact, Wattamar’s experience is quite different than those of his fellow classmates. While research was on his list of qualifications for graduate school Wattamar had never formally participated in a research experience before.

“I struggled a little initially to catch up with course work, trying to get the lab started and research. All the encouragement and motivation I received from Dr. Dziubla kept me going until I started to get a hold on things. Recently, my work was published in a renowned journal in its field and has received recognition at several research meetings.”

Now that Wattamar has gotten his foot in the door when it comes to research she/he isn’t stopping there. Instead, he is passing it on to undergraduates to give them a learning experience he never had.

“All these mentoring experiences have helped me a lot to develop my leadership skills. I am very proud of the fact that some of the undergraduates working with me have received awards in both local and national competitions,” he says.

Wattamar’s advice to his fellow undergraduates: Keep it fun.

“Our department has ongoing research projects in a variety of fields like energy, biomaterials/drug delivery, catalysis and many others. So a new graduate student has lot of options to choose a research area. There is a lot of help available in terms of resources and expertise both within the department (from faculty and other grad students in the department) as well as outside the department. We have a very dynamic/interactive group of graduate students, which also makes working here a lot of fun,” says Wattamar.

Collegiate decisions are hard to make for every potential freshman applicant, but figuring out where to apply is could be the most daunting. This was definitely true of materials engineering senior, Whitney Epperson, class of 2011, who wasn’t 100 percent confident of where she wanted to apply, but once she decided to “see blue” she hasn’t looked back since. In fact, she can relate to incoming freshman and high school applicants who are still weighing their education options. Epperson says, “I would tell them that I was once undecided about coming to UK, but looking back is was the best decision I ever made.”

Whether it is attending meetings for the materials engineering student organization, going to football and basketball games, studying for tests, or dancing all day and all night to raise money for pediatric oncology, the University of Kentucky has something to offer everyone.

In the materials engineering department students are free to join ASM, American Society of Metals International student organization. Through this organization student members gain professional competence by linking with other members worldwide to obtain information and contacts, as well as provide students the opportunity to interact with professional engineers from industry, academia and government. The Materials Engineering department also sponsors Alpha Sigma Mu, a national materials engineering honor society to recognize and promote high scholarship, original investigation and professional service by its undergraduate students.

It is through networking experiences like these as well career fairs and internships that Epperson has learned the importance that UK places on making connections. According to Epperson, “These experiences are essential as an undergraduate engineering student and I am thankful that UK makes these connections possible.” It was through her networking at the college of engineering that Epperson was able to participate in not one, but two, amazing internships with Logan Aluminum and General Electric.

Epperson says, “As a rising senior in the Materials Engineering Program, I feel that I have been prepared with a strong foundation of knowledge to help me succeed as I pursue a career in a related field.” Paired with a strong foundational knowledge is the ever willing and helpful faculty and staff. Epperson says, “The professors in the Materials Engineering program have helped me succeed. The majority of the professors I have had were always willing to meet with you outside of class time to further explain a topic. Their willingness to help has been a crucial part in my success in the Materials Engineering program at UK.”

In the end, Epperson says, “UK is an awesome school with great professors and outstanding school spirit. No other school in the state can compare.”

“Through the College of Engineering I received an internship with NASA at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.,” says chemical engineering major Chelsie Bottom, class of 2011. Over the summer of 2010, Bottom will work with a NASA engineering mentor, gaining hands-on engineering experience while collaborating with other engineering and science disciplines.

“I’ll earn invaluable work experience, get to experience teamwork building, and receive leadership training that will undoubtedly propel me into a career after graduation,” Bottom says.

Bottom says that the engineering program at UK offers many of the perks of a big university while providing the community feeling of a small school.”UK has a lot to offer undergraduate students from numerous organizations and activities to exciting sports,” Bottom says. “At the same time, you will get a strong education and be well prepared for your plans after graduation, whether in graduate school, professional school or industry.”

In addition to her internship with NASA, interdisciplinary research has been part of Bottom’s experience at UK. She has taken classes in the university’s College of Pharmacy, broadening her understanding of chemical processes by adding a medically-based perspective. “Professors have given me the knowledge and skills I need to succeed not only in the classroom but also in real world situations, which has set me apart from other students,” she says.

With her faculty adviser Dr. J. Zach Hilt, Bottom has researched biochemical engineering applications, including a thermosensitive material that can be used as a remote-control method for releasing drugs. Remotely controlled drug release is a growing area of research for its biomedical applications and ability to alter drug releasing therapy after implantation. Bottom helped author a paper which she presented at the American Institute of Chemical Engineer (AIChE) Southern Regional Conference. The paper won a prize. Bottom was also later selected as the Outstanding Chemical Engineering Junior by the Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering.

“The professors and advisors are very supportive and have worked hard to help me reach my individual goals,” Bottom says. “The smaller classes have given me an opportunity to become good friends with the other students and develop close relationships with my professors, allowing me to learn with and from my peers as well as being strengthened as a student and individual.”

Learning to deal with problems is one of the biggest things Kevin Baldridge has learned so far as a college student. “Definitely, the most helpful thing at UK is learning how to solve problems,” he says. “My professors have taught me how to look at a problem from different angles to find the most effective solution.”

A chemical engineering major in the class of 2011, Baldridge also values the research opportunities he has received. “My best experiences at UK have been the many opportunities I’ve had as part of undergraduate research,” he says. In 2009 he took part in a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program, where he worked with faculty and other top students on engineered bioactive interfaces and devices. “As someone who hopes to ultimately become a professor, these experiences are all that I could have asked for from my undergraduate education,” he says.

Baldridge worked with Dr. Kim Anderson and Dr. Thomas Dziubla on a nanoparticle drug delivery system that can be used to fight cancer using antioxidants. “The research I do is very pharmaceutically oriented,” he says. As part of his research, he wrote a paper won the first place award for his section and the overall second place award at the 2010 American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) Southern Regional Conference.

“I love chemistry and I love math, so I think chemical engineering sounds great,” Baldridge says. “In my opinion, engineering is one of the best educations you can get. You learn a new way of thinking.”

As a chemical engineering major at UK, Jenna Shapiro, class of 2011, knows first-hand the number of research experiences available to undergraduate students. Part of Dr. Kim Anderson’s research group in the Cellular Bioengineering Laboratory, Shapiro has helped research cancer-detecting biosensors and other compounds and structures that can interact with the human body for medical purposes.

“UK has all the opportunities of a large university and all of the familiarity of a small school,” she says. “The College of Engineering has provided me with a challenging curriculum, opportunities for undergraduate research, chances to present at professional meetings and a close-knit group of faculty and students.”

The challenging curriculum has paid off. In 2010 Shapiro was named a Goldwater Scholar, with a prestigious scholarship worth approximately $7,500 per year for up to two years of undergraduate study. “I credit my academic success to the dedication of my mentors and graduate students who encouraged me to pursue independent research,” she says.

Shapiro was one of 278 students nationwide awarded the scholarship, selected from among 1,111 mathematics, science and engineering students nationwide. She has also been accepted into Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) programs at MIT in the summer of 2010 and UK in the summer of 2009. Both REU programs covered ways engineering interacts with biological systems.

“Not only have I had an exceptional educational experience, but I have also been able to network with both peers and professionals,” Shapiro says. She’s involved with several campus organizations, serving as a committee chair for the UK Chapter of the Society of Women Engineers and is a member of Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society and the American Institute of Chemical Engineers. She plans to pursue a doctoral degree in chemical engineering, focusing on biomedical applications. She would eventually like to conduct research to develop cancer treatments and teach at a research-intensive university.

“The campus is beautiful, the laboratories are well equipped, and the people are friendly and willing to help,” Shapiro says. “Professors are genuinely concerned about their students’ success and always provide excellent guidance.”