Studying Bioengineering to Make a Difference
Aaron Chen, E’27, bioengineering, is starting his third year of undergraduate studies and is already making the most of his academic experience. From participating in an engaging research co-op and collaborating on meaningful projects in Forge, Chen enjoys exploring the bioengineering field and taking advantage of career-advancing opportunities to develop impactful medical devices one day.
Aaron Chen was intrigued by Northeastern University’s co-op program and the mobility the program offers students to work in a vast array of industries and roles. He knew pursuing his undergraduate studies at Northeastern would open many doors for his future career. Inspired by his father, who is a doctor, Chen wanted to study a subject that would allow him to help the wider community by developing advanced medical technology. Chen recently started his third year of undergraduate studies in the bioengineering program with a concentration in biomedical devices and bioimaging, and has already completed his first co-op at the Extracellular Matrix Research Lab. He is excited to continue expanding his knowledge of the field throughout the rest of his degree program.
Co-op at the Extracellular Matrix Research Lab
For his first co-op, Chen worked as a research assistant at the Extracellular Matrix Research Lab with COE Distinguished Professor Jeffrey Ruberti. As Chen’s role consisted mostly of failure testing collagen fibers, he would create a collagen solution, take one of the fibers, and stretch it out using a micropipette puller to test the strength of the fiber in various conditions. He would assess the fibers at different temperatures or stretch the fibers at different speeds to see how these variables influenced their strength.
Chen and his fellow researchers at the RISE Expo.
While Chen was on co-op, he had the opportunity to attend the RISE Expo at Northeastern with the other undergraduate researchers at the lab to present their work. Chen said it was rewarding to see his contributions to the research being presented for others to see. Their research ended up winning the PEAK Award through the PEAK Program, which rewards students with funding to continue their research.
Through his co-op experience, Chen learned a lot about the research field and gained deeper insight into his career aspirations. From the beginning, Chen was intrigued by this opportunity and how the research combined many aspects of the bioengineering field. While conducting the research, Chen discovered his interest in working with SolidWorks and AutoCAD, and learned he enjoys being able to develop and create technology. Chen additionally discovered his passion for working in a lab and would like to continue working in a lab beyond his graduation.
Chen said a memorable part of his co-op experience was when he was able to complete experiments without supervision. He said it was very fulfilling to be able to independently contribute to the important work the lab was exploring.
Extracurriculars
Chen with his fellow Forge members.
In his second year of undergraduate studies, Chen joined Forge at Northeastern. Forge is a student organization that aims to strengthen students’ entrepreneurial and engineering skills by working on all aspects of the product development process. Each semester, teams within the club aspire to develop a new product, based on a theme. Chen was a member of the product lab; his role involved the hands-on portion of creating the product. With the theme of “Healthcare in the Workplace”, Chen and his team built a device to improve a person’s posture while sitting at a desk. The device was a portable vest, large enough to fit over a chair, with built-in inflatable air sacs. When someone sat down, air would fill the vest, adjust to the person’s sitting position, and correct their posture. The prototype for their device also included an app that could be used with the product.
While the prototype did not work exactly as planned, Chen thought it was a worthwhile learning experience for him. He said he gained insight into the product development process and strengthened his technical engineering skills. He also learned how to sew while creating the vest, which he found to be a valuable new skill he acquired.
Future Perspectives
Chen is starting to apply for his second co-op and is open to exploring more of the bioengineering field, whether in a research or industry environment. He said he wants to gain experience in various jobs and likes that the co-op program gives him the opportunity to do that.
The medical device industry intrigues Chen a lot; he enjoys the hands-on process of drawing the concept of a device and developing it into a physical product. He likes that creating medical devices can positively impact communities and improve the health of others. Overall, Chen’s experience at Northeastern has been filled with beneficial experiences that have encouraged him to pursue his interests and passions.