Zakiya James

Rising Junior
Civil Engineering
University of the District of Columbia
CEINT Research Site: Gunsch Lab- Duke University

Working with the CEINT REU over the summer was a very rewarding experience. This REU gave me the opportunity to push myself and grow as an individual. Prior to working with CEINT, I had no laboratory experience and little knowledge of nanotechnology, but with the help of my mentor and graduate student I was able to tackle the tasks at hand. My graduate student was always around to answer questions I had and the weekly meetings with my mentor really helped me focus my research project. I found the environment at CEINT to be not only encouraging, but also stimulating. I left CEINT with a vast knowledge of nanotechnology, something that was once foreign to me.

Career Impacts

The CEINT REU opened my eyes up to the number of fields that I could work in. Although I enjoyed my time at Duke, I don’t think research is my passion. I am truly grateful for the knowledge that I have gained from this internship and the research that I performed, but I believe industry is where I belong. I would one day like to work as a structural engineer for an engineering firm of my own.