2017 Distinguished Engineering Alumni Medal (DEAM) ceremony

Alumni Spotlights

Since its founding in 1962, over 28,000 students — and counting! — have graduated from the UC Davis College of Engineering. Our alumni have pursued careers in a wide variety of technical fields in industry, public service and academia, occupying positions of leadership and making a global difference.

Alumni Spotlights

Our alumni have become pioneers in their respective fields with achievements that have been far-reaching. Here are some outstanding examples of how our graduates are changing the world:

Alumni Spotlight: Kimberly Budil, '88, '94

Kim Budil received her B.S. in physics from University of Illinois Chicago in 1987, her M.S. in applied science from UC Davis in 1988, and her Ph.D. in applied science from UC Davis in 1994. She has held positions at the Lawrence Livermore National Lab (LLNL), the UC Office of the President and the US Department of Energy. Today, Budil leads LLNL’s nuclear weapons program.

Alumni Spotlight: Diane Bryant, '85

UC Davis electrical engineering alumna Diane Bryant (’85) is one of the most powerful women in tech. Most recently, she was the chief operating officer of Google’s Cloud Platform where she managed Google Cloud’s supply chain optimization, customer adoption and IT product development efforts. She was previously the senior vice president and general manager of Intel Corporation’s Data Center Group, a role that landed her on Fortune’s “50 Most Powerful Women in Business” and Business Insider’s&nb

Alumni Spotlight: Adam Davis, '04

Adam Davis graduated from UC Davis in 2004 with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering. He is a Principal Engineer at Weston & Associates Mechanical Engineers, Inc., a full-service design engineering firm providing mechanical engineering services to architects and owners for projects throughout California.

Alumni Spotlight: Jose Velazquez, '13, '14, '17

Jose Velazquez was eight years old when he moved to the United States from Mexico. He has gone on to become the first in his immediate family to graduate from college, going on to earn a Ph.D. in mechanical and aeronautical engineering from UC Davis in 2017. Always obsessed with cars, he is now an engineer at Ford. The holder of seven pending patents, in May 2018 he was awarded Ford’s Controls Engineering Chief Engineer’s Award for outstanding on-the-job performance.

Velazquez lives in Michigan with his wife, Beatriz, and a puppy.

Jose Velazquez: Toward a Future of Electric Cars

Jose Velazquez was eight years old when he moved to the United States from Mexico. He has gone on to become the first in his immediate family to graduate from college, going on to earn a Ph.D. in mechanical and aerospace engineering from UC Davis in 2017. Always obsessed with cars, he is now an engineer at Ford.