Sample College Admission Essay

The MSE Undergraduate research option interests me because it gives me the opportunity to connect with MSE faculty, engage in meaningful hands on research, lay a foundation for further research and work opportunities, and most importantly, allows me to become more passionate about my degree.

The specific aspects of research that interest me most are connecting with MSE faculty, learning how to use lab equipment, applying theoretical knowledge, and finding my passion within the broad field of Materials Science and Engineering. Firstly, I believe it is important to for me to make connections with faculty who specialize in my areas of interest. This guidance is important because it will give me exposure to my interests and because it will help me identify future research and employment

Hands on work will help prepare me for the workforce and provides an enjoyable change of pace from the classroom environment. Finally, I am eager to isolate my interests within MSE and perform specific research in those areas. Sometimes as a new student there are areas within a field that seem appealing, yet after pursuing them, may or may not seem so. This undergraduate research opportunity will allow me dip my foot in different areas of MSE early on, and determine what subjects of study are most meaningful to me.

There are two major areas of research that interest me the most in Materials Science and Engineering. My primary area of interest is structural colors, which Dr. Mohan Srinivasarao has investigated. Wildlife photography has been my hobby for seven years, and I have always been amazed at the ways nature produces structural colors in certain bird and insect species. I have often read about the remarkable way hummingbirds and scarab beetles produce colors through nanostructures in their feathers and exoskeletons and would enjoy investigating this phenomena