SO Excited to be part of the REU @ UT Arlington

Alright. Here it comes. The summer 2012 REU @ UT Arlington.  Only, four days remain till I start to conduct my own engineering research on daily basis. Though I feel a little nervous of what’s waiting me ahead, I do also have this unusual feeling of excitement since this is going to be my first civil-engineering-related research experience in my life. After spending a long time applying and preparing for this REU, now I can say that the main knowledge I was seeking is coming up soon. I hope this is going to be a time of learning more about civil engineering , conducting experiments, working together with new people in  a new environment,  and most importantly a time of  preparing my future career.

This blog will mainly help me providing my followers, friends and my college colleagues with updates on my research experience. Hopefully, I will be able to post short summaries of events on a daily basis.

As result of this awesome experience, I hope to publish my own engineering research paper and poster. Also I will presents the research results at different conferences and, of course, at my school. This research experience will also give me something big to put on my resume. This will increase my chances of getting a job since most of today’s employers are looking for engineering graduates who had not only excelled at school but also are equipped with engineering skills that are used to solve problems of the real world.

Additionally, as I am planning to join a civil engineering graduate program, I'm planning to put the NSF-funded research experience on my graduate school applications which will help me to stand out among other applicants. Another benefit I'm looking forward to getting is working alongside knowledgeable and professional civil engineering faculty staff. These civil engineering PhD holders will guide me through my research experience by showing me some important tips that lead to a successful research. Another benefit to mention is the recommendation letters I'll get from the above civil engineering faculty members or my REU mentors. Apart from the faculty members, I hope to be working with civil engineering graduate research assistants (GRAs). My expectations from these GRAs are sharing with me their life experience in graduate studies and helping me to conduct my research well.