Name: Andrea Ashley
Hometown: Owasso, OK
Laboratory: Dimitra Psychogiou Lab
My Path to Engineering
I grew up in Owasso, Oklahoma, and became interested in STEM at a very young age. My father is a mechanical engineer and I was always interested in the type of work he did. Throughout elementary and high school, I excelled in math and science classes, and took advantage of an opportunity to compete in a country-wide engineering challenge. After graduating high school, I was accepted in to Kettering University (formerly known as General Motors Institute) in Flint, Michigan. There I studied both mechanical and electrical engineering, and completed six co-op rotations, two at Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems in Elyria, Ohio, and four with the U.S. Government in Washington, D.C. Upon graduation I accepted a full-time position with the U.S. Government as a weapons signals analyst.
I always knew I wanted to go to graduate school; however, I didn’t know what specific area I wanted to study until my work at the U.S. Government. During those three years of work, I was able to analyze signals and then use the knowledge I obtained in my analysis to help defend our country against foreign threats. I enjoyed the work, but I realized that my current electrical engineering knowledge was not enough to reach my full potential. I began to search for graduate programs that would assist with expanding my knowledge, while also working in defense-related projects.
Why CU Boulder?
I decided to go to CU Boulder’s Department of Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering after researching multiple electrical engineering programs, and after receiving emails from the university encouraging me to apply. Given their research programs aligned with my future career goals, and Colorado was a place my husband always wanted to live, we decided to move from D.C. to Boulder. During the interview process I felt welcome from day one, and I even had the opportunity to interview with many of the professors and tour the school before making a decision.
CU has several things to offer students. First, the location is fantastic! Being near the mountains gives students numerous opportunities to go for a hike and enjoy the outdoors. Second, as far as the programs go, I love how the advisors are so invested in the students and their research; each student gets hands-on experience designing, fabricating and measuring the prototypes. These experiences have given me a unique education that I’m not sure I would have obtained elsewhere!