Advice from Alumni

"Try and understand how the subject matter you are studying relates to real world applications. Take any areas you are interested in and see how the knowledge you are acquiring could be used to resolve or understand the major challenges in those areas."
9/10/18

Anil Sethy, MS 1972, PhD 1975
Vice President of Engineering, Packaging Corporation of America

"I would spend more time and effort on building stronger relationships with my peers."
9/10/18

Cindi Hoover, PhD 1995
Director of Applications R&D, Praxair, Inc.

"Also realize that opportunities may not present themselves on a flier to you as you walk down the hallway – you may need to search some of these out yourself.  Be proactive - your future self will appreciate your efforts."
9/10/18

Donald P. Visco, Jr., BS 1992, PhD 1999
Professor of Chemical Engineering, The University of Akron

"Make sure that after the professor spends ten minutes writing up an equation, ask how that can be applied using real-life examples."
9/10/18

Glenn Walnicki, BS 2000
Control Systems Engineer, General Electric

"One thing I wish I understood as an undergraduate is that learning how to frame a problem is critical to solving a problem."
9/10/18

Jim Scinta, MS 1975, PhD 1978
Chief Executive Officer, ScintaPetroTech Consulting LLC

Don't stay in your office, roll up your sleeves and get out into the plant to see first hand how a process works in "real life" and connect that back to what was learned in the classroom to provide a practical link to troubleshoot problems, make improvements, and utilize new technologies.
9/10/18

Mike Kucharski, BS 1978, MBA 1998
President & CEO, VanDeMark Chemical Company

"Seek out every opportunity to speak in front of people and write excellent reports."
9/10/18

Nisar Amin, BS 1996
Senior Process Engineer, Mannington Mills, Inc.

"Math has been very important in my career."
9/10/18

Renato T. Yadoya, PhD 1972
Retired from Nuclear Energy Commission of Brazil

"...use knowledge of chemistries, physics, mathematics, biology, and computational analysis to develop and commercialize new products and processes, as well as to improve existing products and process"
9/10/18

Weidong An
Site Technology Manager, Technical Department and Quality Control Lab, Peroxychem