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This summer, 11 undergraduate engineering students at the Jacobs School received scholarships to conduct research in labs on campus as part of the IDEA Engineering Research Scholarship program.

This is the fourth year that the program has provided summer scholarships for undergraduates to master core research skills as they work on real-world engineering projects, thanks to support from San Diego-based industry partner General Atomics.

Nanoengineering student Alison Lin, pictured here, was awarded a scholarship to develop prototypes for a soft, pneumatic vine robot that could one day replace the rigid and often uncomfortable speculums used for pelvic exams.

Aerospace engineering student David Mkrtchian was awarded an IDEA Engineering Research Scholarship to continue his work on a drone with tilted motors that can move while remaining level.

Learn more about this scholarship program at the link in our bio.

#ucsdengineering #studentscholarships Student in a lab pushes a button on a force gauge

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⚡Triton Racing went electric!⚡

After nearly 30 years of designing and building a formula race car powered by an internal combustion engine for the annual Formula Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) collegiate competition, the Triton Racing student team at UC San Diego flipped a switch in 2023 and went electric!

For the first time, the team was able to bring a functioning formula race car running on its own battery power that they designed and built to the Formula SAE Electric competition this June, representing three years of intense learning and work.

Undergraduate students from engineering and computer science majors across the Jacobs School of Engineering sourced only the battery cell subpacks off the shelf — they built all the rest of the battery components, and designed the 350 Volt battery themselves. Then, they had to redesign the entire car chassis to meet the requirements of an electric vehicle.

“One of the big selling points for students to get involved with Triton Racing is getting real world experience working on a project team, and getting that career-relevant engineering experience," said Aidan Fuller, a computer engineering student and president of Triton Racing. “A lot of us are interested in the automotive industry in the future, so mirroring the industry changes and trends toward electric vehicles will better prepare us for future careers.”

Triton Racing alumni have gone on to careers at Tesla Motors, Rivian Automotive, Mercedes-AMG F1, Honda Performance Development, and Hyundai Technical Center, to name just a few.

Learn more about their new electric formula car at the link in our bio.

#ucsdengineering #fsae #electriccar Students stand behind a formula race car under a Michigan international speedway sign

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Only 12% of stroke patients eligible for a time-critical and life-saving procedure to restore normal blood flow are able to access this treatment, due to distance from a specialized hospital with highly trained surgeons.

With up to $22.9M from the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), engineers at UC San Diego will lead development of a soft robot that can autonomously navigate through the tiny blood vessels of the brain to remove the blood clot, expanding access to this life-saving procedure.

The multi-institution research team is led by Tania Morimoto, associate professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at UC San Diego. The research team, which spans six universities and three industry partners, will transform this thrombectomy procedure from highly trained surgeons in a specialized care setting, into one performed at a local hospital.

“Our big goal is to make it possible for people in underserved and rural areas to have access to a procedure that we know is very successful at treating strokes,” said Morimoto. “We will combine embedded mechanical intelligence with artificial intelligence in this soft robot with the goal of making it easier to deploy in essentially any medical setting nationwide, hopefully democratizing access to this time-sensitive procedure.”

Learn more about this project, funded through ARPA-H’s Autonomous Interventions and Robotics program, at the link in our bio.

#ucsdengineering #arpah #stroketreatment #softrobotics Two researchers hold a small, wire-looking soft robot in front of a model of vasculature

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Just a few examples of the many impactful senior design projects our mechanical and aerospace engineering students developed this year!

For their capstone project, undergraduate students work in teams on a real-world challenge sponsored by industry partners and faculty across the university. Students are given a budget, tight deadlines, and realistic specification constraints. At the end of the course, students have a working hardware prototype that can be used or iterated on by the sponsor.

Kudos to all MAE seniors on fantastic projects!

Video ID: a large group of students stands together, followed by several individual students describing their project

#ucsdengineering #mechanicalengineer

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Kudos to Rachel McClow, the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Award of Excellence recipient!

McClow, a mechanical engineering student, was a force-multiplier for the Society of Women Engineers at UC San Diego, where she served as VP of External Affairs. In that role, McClow created opportunities for her peers by connecting students with industry partners for mentorship and potential internship and job opportunities.

McClow also served as a mentor to incoming freshman mechanical and aerospace engineering students through the Math Bridge to Success program, helping the next generation of students succeed on campus, and served as a tutor in the MAE 3: Introduction to Mechanical Design course, where she led lab sections and helped students build their robots.

As an undergraduate, McClow conducted research in two different labs on campus. In Prof. Tania Morimoto’s lab, McClow assisted a team of researchers developing an outerwear hand-prosthetic for stroke patients to assist with opening the hand and other movements. In Prof. Boris Kramer’s lab, she worked on learning dynamic systems models and designing classification algorithms for high-resolution, high-throughput data from fluid experiments.

Next year, McClow will return to UC San Diego as a PhD candidate in mechanical engineering, analyzing the mechanical properties of the musculoskeletal system in microgravity situations.

Congrats, Rachel! So excited to welcome you back to campus as a grad student 🔱

#ucsdengineering #ucsd2026

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And the winner of the MAE3 spring 2026 robot matchup is.....Quirktet 🤖

Mechanical engineering students in the Introduction to Engineering Graphics and Design course worked in teams to build a robot that could secure various forms of clean energy - interpreted as balls - and transport them to their respective power plant on the contest table. Robots went head-to-head for 60 seconds to see who could win the most points.

Congrats to all the students on a fantastic competition!

#ucsdengineering #robotics

video ID: Excited groups of students maneuver robots around a small table to pick up or move balls of different sizes to their side.

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We lit 🔥

(🎥: @vic.ray03 @wills.moore @itay_ben_yoseph )

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“My journey at UC San Diego started when I was only 16, and now I am 21, leaving my teenage years behind.

I graduated in 2025 with my B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and a minor in General Biology. I am very excited and privileged to graduate again in 2026 with my M.S. in my dream field of Biomechanics and Biomedical Engineering. Although it has only been a year since my last graduation, this one feels more transformative as I am the first woman in my family with a graduate degree in engineering. My mom was only able to acquire a high school degree, and my grandmother only reached middle school. Both made a living as a seamstress and wished for me to find a field to hone my creativity and love of STEM. I am very honored to reach this milestone for my family.

I am honored to continue my education once again with my PhD in Bioengineering at UC San Diego. Excited to join the elusive club of being a 3x Triton. After I complete my PhD, I plan to become a professor leading research in therapeutic and diagnostic devices to combine my knowledge in materials science, mechanical engineering, and biology. Additionally, I hope to carry on the legacy of my professors--Dr. Marko V. Lubarda, Dr. Ekaterina Evdokimenko, and Dr. Erika L. Cyphert--by using their teaching styles to mentor the next generation of students and incredible scientists.”

-Anna My Nguyen (she/her/hers), B.S. in Mechanical Engineering ’25, M.S. in Engineering Sciences: Biomechanics and Biomedical Engineering ’26

#TritonStories #UCSD2026 #UCSanDiego #UCSD #UCSDAlumni Anna stands smiling in front of the Geisel Library at UC San Diego. They are holding a blue parasol and wearing a graduation stole with "UC LEADS" and "Class of 2025" written on it.

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Matthew Skotnicki, a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy working towards a master’s in aerospace engineering at UC San Diego, got a close look at the NASA Artemis mission’s Orion capsule after it splashed down in San Diego upon its return from orbiting the far side of the moon.

It was a great experience, but it wasn’t enough for Skotnicki. His ultimate goal? To actually fly in such a capsule, as an astronaut on a mission like Artemis.

He’s working hard to try and be one step closer to the action during NASA’s Artemis III mission, currently planned for 2027, where he hopes to be part of the Spacecraft Recovery Program tasked with safely getting all astronauts and equipment back on land.

To be as well equipped as possible, Skotnicki is earning his divemaster qualification this summer; supplementing his pilot’s license with the Instrument Flight Rules rating; and working toward his skydiving license – “Just because skydiving is fun.”

This is in addition to an already taxing schedule. In his Navy role, Skotnicki is a Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) Junior Officer of the Deck instructor at Naval Base San Diego, teaching upcoming officers how to operate the LCS class of ships.

In the afternoons, he takes graduate courses in aerospace engineering at UC San Diego.

NASA - take note! Skotnicki is putting in the work to be ready when astronaut applications next open up.

Learn more about this Jacobs School graduate student and Naval Officer at the link in our bio.

#ucsdengineering #artemisii #aerospaceengineering #navy

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Looking for a course to take in Session 1? Consider taking MAE 142! #ucsdsummer

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You’ve probably walked by it hundreds of times, but have you ever stopped and looked at the clock in front of Jacobs Hall? Do you know its history? Thanks to the new Triton Restoration Initiative student org, the 30-year-old clock is being restored to mint condition - but the students need your help to get this project across the finish line!

The intricate mechanics of this grandfather clock were designed by a team of students for their capstone mechanical engineering project in 1995. Some of these same students, plus a few additions, joined together the following year to finish building the clock and had it installed in a prominent location in front of Jacobs Hall. This group called themselves The Finisher’s Club.

This particular mechanical clock design has served as an inspiration and model for countless students in the beloved MAE3 course, a hands-on introductory engineering course where students are tasked with designing a pendulum, fabricating a model clock mechanism and analyzing its timing.

After decades of exposure to the elements the clock components began to break down. In 2023, another group of mechanical engineering students formed the Triton Restoration Initiative student org to take down, refurbish, and reinstall this clock, while thoroughly documenting all designs and components for posterity.

The students completed the restoration of the gearbox in spring 2025, and added new sensors to monitor the status of the pendulum and gears. Now, the Triton Restoration Initiative students need $20,000 to complete the final steps of this process as they refurbish the clock’s case and stand. They can’t reinstall the repaired and updated gearbox until they have a new, watertight enclosure and stand, and are counting on support from alumni and the campus community to make it happen!

You can learn more about this project and support the Triton Restoration Initiative’s efforts to restore this landmark at the link in our bio.

This is just the beginning for TRI! The org aims to restore the past and engineer the future all around campus, breathing new life into campus landmarks, art pieces, signage and more that is aging and in need of repair.

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We're proud to partner with the University of Michigan College of Engineering and Georgia Tech College of Engineering to co-host the 2026 NextProf Pathfinder Future Faculty Workshop. This year, the workshop will be held at the University of Michigan campus.

✨ Travel and workshop-associated costs will be covered for accepted applicants!✨

The NextProf Pathfinder Future Faculty Workshop supports students interested in becoming engineering faculty. It is designed for rising first- and second-year Ph.D. students, as well as first- and second-year master’s students who intend to apply to a Ph.D. program in engineering. The workshop prepares participants for a successful graduate school experience and a future career in academia.

Share this opportunity with eligible candidates and encourage them to apply by May 26. If you've participated in NextProf Pathfinder in past years, we'd love to hear how the experience impacted you!

Learn more and apply at the link in our bio.

#ucsdengineering
#nextprof #futurefaculty

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