E-SEARCH

Partnering in Research and Mentoring

Research and mentoring are critical aspects of a student’s experience.

The UC Davis College of Engineering is pleased to support E-SEARCH, a program launched in 2023 for undergraduates who are considering graduate study or careers in engineering research by linking them with engineering graduate students who are conducting research projects. The program aims to broaden participation in engineering advanced study, introduce students to new career paths, demonstrate the real-world impacts and applications of engineering research, and provide graduate students with teaching and mentoring opportunities.

This cohort-based program invites current students to participate in program activities for one quarter. Participants will engage in program elements including research experience, mentoring from current graduate students, and support for preparing application materials for graduate study.

View our poster presented at the 2023 Scholarship of Teaching & Learning Conference to learn more about what we are learning from participants! (Credit: Mandeep Singh Basson, Ph.D. and former Mentor)

E-SEARCH Opens Doors to Higher Education

The new research-focused mentorship program unlocks the potential to pursue academic careers in engineering for undergraduates
Read Article

Mentors (Doctoral Students)

Current UC Davis doctoral students enrolled in the College of Engineering are eligible to apply to be a Mentor. Mentors will meet regularly with their mentee to discuss shared interests and goals. The mentoring pair will also identify a short-term research experience that can be completed by the end of the quarter. Additional mentoring activities include:

• Face-to-face check-in with mentees on a regular basis 
• Introducing mentees to how academic research is conducted
• Share experiences to illustrate their own journey to graduate school

In order to best match mentors with mentees, applicants for Mentors will be asked to share general information on their research efforts, faculty advisors, previous mentoring experience, and motivation.

Applications for Fall 2024 will open in August.

Mentees (Undergraduate Students)

Engineering undergraduates who are in good academic standing and have a 2.500 or better GPA are eligible for participation. Working with a Mentor, mentees will gain insights into graduate study in engineering. The mentoring pair will also identify a short-term research experience that can be completed by the end of the quarter. Additional mentoring activities include:

• Regular meetings, in person, with your mentor 
• Hands-on research experience
• Guidance on applying for graduate study

Factors such as shared interests with a mentor will also be considered in the selection process. Space is limited.

Applications for Fall 2024 will open in August.

Project Showcase

We held our Project Showcase on June 5, 2024. Each project was devised by a mentee and mentor pair. Future participants will have the opportunity to design their own projects through collaborative efforts.

• Spring 2024 Projects

• Full project abstracts are available here
  
  Team 001  |  Hot Wheels Wind Tunnel
  Ivan Leung, Daniel Rivera

  Team 002  |  Get Started with Python: Processing and Visualizing Census and Geospatial Data
  Victoria Lam, Weijing Wang

  Team 003  |  Enhancing Wildfire Monitoring through Remote Sensing with Sentinel-2 Satellite Imagery and Python Programming
  Quynh Tran, Mohammadreza Narimani

  Team 004  |  Vernacular materials for construction and building: an overview
  Xiang Gu, Patrick Cunningham

  Team 005  |  Numerical Simulation of Passive Suspension Systems: Investigation of the Impact of Vehicle Type, Road Roughness, Dampers, and Springs
  Anthony Castellanos, Maziar Mivehchi

  Team 006  |  Nonlinear Effects of Gravity Loads on Irregular Frame Structures under Earthquakes and Wind
  Betty Choy, Arka Maity

  Team 007  |  Dynamical Inference of Nonlinear Latent Structures in iEEG data during Decision Making
  Angela Zhou, Logan Peters

  Team 008  |  Unsupervised Model for Depth Estimation
  Doai Ngo, Katherine Cheng

  Team 009  |  Evapotranspiration Rate Measurement for Lettuce Cultivation in Closed System Environment
  John Haugseth, Abir Ahsan

  Team 010  |  Does data augmentation teach deepfake detectors a clearer worldview?
  Carly Wolf, Jayneel Vora

  Team 011  |  Side-Channel Analysis using STLINK V3PWR: Enhancing Hardware Security through Attack Simulation and Performance Monitoring
  Donggeon Kim, Kevin Immanuel Gubbi

  Team 012  |  An Exploration of Water Quality and Greenhouse Gas Dynamics in an Aerated versus a Non-Aerated Reservoir
  Genevieve Imboden, Ruth Thirkill

  Team 013  |  Criteria to screen liquid organic hydrogen carriers (LOHCs) for coupling with direct isopropanol fuel cell (DIFC)
  Shrishti Chezhian, Siddharth Sonti

  Team 014  |  Autophagy Behavior in Neuronal Cells: Quantifying Morphological Cell Profiles
  Elle Defensor, Neil Adia

This program is supported through the Next Level Education initiative.