Senior physics major Emily Batt learned an important lesson by conducting research on melancholy 17th-century monks for a directed study as an undeclared freshman.
“It was the first time I realized that one topic could be approached and understood from many different perspectives,” said Batt, who was named the 2012 student commencement speaker by members of the university’s senior leadership team. “Considering a topic from a new point of view or with a different methodology can bring forth new solutions to old problems.”
Her research philosophy has shaped her wide range of experiential-learning opportunities at top-tier firms, labs and universities.
Batt has conducted research on physical oceanography for Oregon State University; examined the link between cancer and biological cell networks for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute; designed dozens of biomedical devices for Fikst Product Development, a product design and engineering firm in Woburn, Mass.; and created a network-science-based computer simulation of macroeconomic principles for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Media Lab.
“Co-op showed me what my strengths and weaknesses were and made me a more conscientious worker and a better leader,” Batt said. “I was able to discover jobs that focused on my interests in very different ways.”
Full article: http://www.northeastern.edu/news/2012/05/emilybatt/