
One grad’s dreams come true thanks to ݮƵ co-op
Engineering grad heads to Princeton after co-op terms as a researcher at ݮƵ, Harvard, Xerox, and an MIT startup
Engineering grad heads to Princeton after co-op terms as a researcher at ݮƵ, Harvard, Xerox, and an MIT startup
By Clare Flood Co-operative Education & Career ActionHow do you go from being a new grad of an undergraduate engineering program - to studying for a PhD at Princeton University?
If you’re a University of ݮƵ student with a passion for research like , you take advantage of ݮƵ’s world-renowned co-operative education program.Sixty-six per cent of ݮƵ students come to the University for itsco-operative education program, the largest of its kind in the world.
“My co-op experience at Harvard University had a significant impact on my career. I had the opportunity to work with a group of truly brilliant individuals. The result was an unprecedented rate of learning and achievement in my career,” says Nerger.
Nerger, who graduates this week and will begin his doctoral studies next fall at the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Princeton University, completed six research-focused co-op terms during his undergraduate studies in the ݮƵ’s Faculty of Engineering:
During his term at Xerox, Nerger successfully invented a new ink design for 3D printing. The invention has been filed at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Officewith him listed as a co-inventor.
“Ultimately, my co-op experience at Harvard confirmed my desire to pursue graduate studies and sparked my interest in entrepreneurship,” he said. “I’m confident that my co-op terms at Harvard played an integral role in helping me gain admission to the PhD program at Princeton.”
Outside of his own work terms, Nerger helped other ݮƵ students secure international co-op work, visa paperwork and accommodation. He has also assisted students who are interested in research positions at universities like Harvard and ݮƵ.
“Bryan personifies the creative, innovative, and socially conscious character of the University of ݮƵ,” says Rocco Fondacaro, acting executive director of Co-operative Education & Career Action. “Like so many other ݮƵ co-op students, Bryan exudes the personal leadership that strengthens institutional leadership in engineering and invention.”
In 2012, Nerger earned the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Undergraduate Student Research Award, and in 2014, he received the NSERC Industrial Undergraduate Student Research Award for his strong academic standing and research aptitude.
Nerger is also nominated for the 2015 Co-operative Education Internship Association (CEIA) Co-operative Education Achievement Award.
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The University of ݮƵ acknowledges that much of our work takes place on the traditional territory of the Neutral, Anishinaabeg, and Haudenosaunee peoples. Our main campus is situated on the Haldimand Tract, the land granted to the Six Nations that includes six miles on each side of the Grand River. Our active work toward reconciliation takes place across our campuses through research, learning, teaching, and community building, and is co-ordinated within the Office of Indigenous Relations.