Degree: Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering
Major/Department: German, Mechanical Engineering
Class: Senior

Biography:
Beth Huelskamp is a senior mechanical engineering/German major from St.
Henry, Ohio.  She plans to attend graduate school after graduation.  At UD,
she has been involved in the Berry Scholars Program, the American Society
of Mechanical Engineers, Tau Beta Pi, and the New Engineers Program.  She
also volunteers at the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery coaching a FIRST Lego
Robotics team.  Beth participated in a study abroad program in the summer
of 2006 in Marburg, Germany, and spent the summer of 2007 in Germany
working at an internship in the automotive engineering department at the
Technische Universität Darmstadt.  Currently, she is working on her honors
thesis under Dr. Lafdi of UDRI, investigating the use of carbon foams and
polymers as scaffolds for bone regeneration.  She is also completing a
co-op at Goodrich Wheels and Brakes in Troy, Ohio.

Student Perspective:
The summer after my sophomore year, I traveled to Marburg with the German
department and attended a language school there.  Our class was filled with
students from all over the world – from Kenya, the Ukraine, China,
Indonesia, India, Turkey, and others, resulting in a truly international
experience.  Our class discussions often revolved around our politics,
traditions, history, and our respective cultures.  In addition, the other
UD students and I lived with German host families and had the opportunity
to talk with them over meals and in the evenings about German lifestyle and
politics.
The next summer I applied and was accepted to a National Science Foundation
Research Experience for Undergraduates in Darmstadt, Germany.  This
opportunity was perfect for me – I got to do engineering research while
living in Germany and improving my language skills, and the NSF was taking
care of all of the bills.  All of the documentation for my project was in
German, requiring me to pick up a lot of technical terms, and I got to
interact with my German colleagues on a daily basis, sometimes serving as
translator for the less German-adept members of our group.  This experience
introduced me to the German university culture and to truly living and
working in Germany.  I also had the opportunity to travel on the weekends,
visiting (and getting lost in) Florence, Rome, Nuremberg, Prague, Munich,
and Paris.
When I look back on the things I have done at UD – study abroad,
internships, thesis work in cutting-edge technology, service and leadership
opportunities through the New Engineers Program – as well as the
friendships I have formed here, I continue to be amazed at the
opportunities that I have had here.