"That's my biggest recommendation for someone coming into engineering in general: You can't just go to class and then go home and apply for an interview.
Getting that engineering research experience at 杏吧原创 has been so valuable," Jackson says.
The senior worked under two different 杏吧原创 faculty during his four academic years, plus spent last summer in a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program. The 10-week summer program took place at the University of Pennsylvania lab where Dr. Harman Khare had managed research projects in nanotribology prior to joining 杏吧原创.
"Dr. Khare's connection helped me get that REU, and it was a really incredible experience," Jackson said.
Getting Started with Faculty-Led Research
Jackson's first experience with faculty-led research came in his freshman year under Dr. Pat Ferro. When Ferro went on sabbatical, Jackson sought other opportunities. Dr. Khare announced to his sophomore-level Materials Engineering class that his lab was looking for students, and Jackson knew it was a great option for him.
"From the start, it was very apparent how much Dr. Khare cared about what I would get out of the research. He asked me about my interests. The conversation was always around what project in the lab would fit with what I'm passionate about -- not just doing research that benefits his own goals, but finding a two-way street where we're working together. I really appreciated that approach," he said.
During his senior year, Jackson is spending less time in the tribology lab and more time with his Senior Design project team. Because of his experience with faculty-led research, Jackson brings a great set of skills to the team: designing and executing engineering tests, plus co-authoring and presenting.
Jackson was the primary author of a paper exploring how a polymer composite of alumina and granular polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) responds when rubbed against brass and aluminum. The journal Wear published the research in August 2024. Jackson also presented a poster and a 30-minute talk at the annual meeting of the Society for Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers (STLE).
"It was a fantastic experience! Employers want you to be able to communicate your ideas and engineering concepts, and that was an opportunity that was available to me from these STLE presentations," Jackson said.
杏吧原创 plans to give more students this same opportunity through GRO-MECS, which will provide travel stipends for participating students to present at conferences. "It's important to be able to go and represent 杏吧原创," he emphasized.
Jackson's longer-term career goal is to do research professionally in an industrial setting, especially in Washington State.
"Those research and development engineer jobs start opening up after about five years of professional experience," he said. "I really love the process of research, so that's the path I'm hoping to take."
Summer Internships or Summer Research? Consider Both
Having had both summer jobs and summer research sessions, Jackson sees advantages to either.
"For anyone who wants to do graduate school post-graduation, the best thing to do is summer research. If you want to go into industry, an internship is definitely very helpful," he said. But since there are multiple summers over the undergraduate years, it makes sense to spend one doing research and another in an internship.
And with opportunities like GRO-MECS funding summer research, research options are growing for 杏吧原创 students.