Author Topic: Meet JHU_Ian - Milan, Italy (Read 2736 times)

JHU_Ian · « **on:** September 30, 2011, 03:33 PM »

Hey there! I'm Ian, a sophomore from Milan, Italy. For those who are curious, my parents are ex-pat Americans and I was born and raised in Europe (never lived in the US until now). I'm a Materials Science & Engineering major. I'm also considering a minor in entrepreneurship and management because I may go into the business of science, or a minor in computer science. I graduated from the International Baccalaureate program before coming to JHU.

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Why Hopkins?
I chose Hopkins because it one of the best schools in the world and also has features of both a large and a small school. It is a small school in the sense that you can get to know your professors (my organic chemistry teacher knows my name even though it's a lecture of about 300 students) and get personal attention, but a big school in the sense that there is so much going on and there are so many interesting people to meet. I also chose it because of the strength of the science programs here (a student can get involved in research in their freshman year) and the friendliness of the students in general.
Lastly, there is no core curriculum so I can take classes in areas I like outside of science. In fact, I'm loving my contemporary international politics class as much as (if not more than) my science classes.
More on how I wound up at JHU from Italy can be found here.

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My Classes

Fall 2011:
Organic Chemistry I
Organic Chemistry Lab I
Anthropology of Media
Honors One-Variable Calculus
Leadership and Team Management (a class through ROTC even if I am not ROTC)

Spring 2012:
Programming for Materials Scientists & Engineers
Multivariable Calculus (Calculus III)
Physics I: Mechanics
Physics I Laboratory
Introduction to Formal Logic
Microeconomics

Fall 2012:
Physics II: Electricity and Magnetism
Physics II Laboratory
Structure of Materials
Biological Materials I
Contemporary International Politics
Economics of Health
Differential Equations

Spring 2013:
Mechanical Properties of Materials
Electrical Properties of Materials
Intro to Programming in Java
Seminar: Careers in Biomedical Sciences

Fall 2013:
Advanced Algebra I
Materials Science Lab I
Molecules and Cells
Electronic and Photonic Processes and Devices
Physical Chemistry of Materials: Thermodynamics

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My Extracurriculars
-Ambulance Work: I received an emergency first responder certification from the Hopkins HERO organization, and decided to do some work with that certificate in an ambulance service outside of Baltimore. I really enjoy it.

-JHUMUNC: Johns Hopkins University Model United Nations Conference [/url]: I was the chair of the UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) committee at the Hopkins Model UN conference that hosted 1,600 high school students. In my committee, we debated the questions of the economics of poverty and gender equality. This is one of my favorite organizations on campus! Now I have moved up to a leadership position (director of the Economic and Social Council) and am still enjoying every second of it.

-Research at the Medical School: I'm conducting research down at Hopkins Medical School with a group of graduate students in the department of biomedical engineering innovation and design working on technology related to biofilm prevention on aortic dialysis and foley catheters as well.

-American Red Cross, Baltimore: I'm a disaster responder for anything ranging from single family fires in Baltimore to National disasters. I work average of 1-2 shifts a week, but there is absolutely minimum or maximum time obligation for anyone involved.

-The Italian Club: I'm also a member of the Italian club, a group of students who gets together weekly to converse exclusively in Italian about anything we find interesting. It has been a great way to meet people from other grades (there are even some post-docs in the club).

-Student Admissions Advisory Board: I'm a member of this group of students who works alongside the admissions office to help answer questions for prospective students honestly and from a current student perspective. It's a lot of fun, and another great way to meet new people.

-Blue Key Society: I am a tour guide at the Homewood Campus. If you want to make it to one of my tours, I give one every Friday at 2pm!
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My Dorms

My freshman year I lived in AMR II-Adams, just down the hall from JHU_Erica. It was such a blast living there, everyone was very social and welcoming. My roommate was from Thailand and we got along really well. I loved it there!

This year, my sophomore year, I am living in McCoy with two of my closest friends. It is going to be a great year.

NisuPatel · « **Reply #1 on:** December 27, 2011, 12:23 AM »

Hey Ian! I was sent here by Sydney to ask you questions about double majoring. Im an incoming BME student and i wanted to double major. At first, i thought of ChemBE, but due to the sheer number of classes required by both, that may be too much/impossible to do. Then, i turned to bio or electrical engineering. I know Ap credits count as well. I have 40 as of now, but how do you know where they apply? also, did you begin t plan out your classes before freshman year or until college began? Sorry for the gajillion questions lol.

JHU_Ian · « **Reply #2 on:** December 27, 2011, 11:23 AM »

Hi Nisu!

Double majoring with your primary major in the Whiting School of Engineering is undoubtedly difficult, but feasible depending on how many credits you come in with. Like you, I came in with a fair amount of credits so it made it a little easier for me to double major. I assume you have already looked up which credits you have received and what JHU classses they place you out of (if you haven't, you can click here). Since you are pre-med you have to be careful about what classes you do decide to take AP credit for. I strongly suggest you read this article from the JHU Pre-Professional advising site and get in touch with them once you arrive at JHU next fall.

Back to your other question about double majoring, the choice of the second major is up to you. The list of required classes for each major in the school of Arts and Sciences can be found on this site here, whereas the one for BME can be found through the BME site here . Double majoring in two types of engineering will be very difficult and will require you to take heavy creditloads even if your majors have classes in common, so I would recommend taking a look at some of the arts and sciences majors or maybe even a minor. If you are interested in medical school, the Computer-Integrated Surgery Minor is really cutting-edge and works well to match your course of studies if your primary major is in the Engineering School.

I hope this helps. Welcome to JHU!

JHU_Ian · « **Reply #3 on:** December 27, 2011, 11:42 AM »

Question:
Hi Ian!

My name is Eric, and I am an accepted freshmen at JHU from Taipei, Taiwan! From your post in the Hopkins page, you wrote that you're majoring in Materials Engineering. That is a major I'm interested in studying, so could you give me some information on the classes you're in and you've taken, and what they are like? I see that you're involved in Model UN as well, how awesome! I've been to several international conferences as a delegate, chair, and DSG during my high school career, so could you give me some information about how Model UN works at JHU? Last but not least, what are your favorite things about JHU, and perhaps some of the things that you thought were different from before and after you arrived.

I'm very excited to head to JHU in Fall 2012!

Reply:
Hi Eric, congrats on being admitted!

I am majoring in materials engineering, it is a pretty fascinating major. The classes I have taken are listed above, and organic chemistry was definitely not as bad as it was made up to be. We learned a lot of reactions to synthesize organic compounds and learned the molecular mechanics that cause organic chemistry to work. In organic chem lab, we applied the concepts we learned in lecture to see how theoretical chemistry differs from actual chemistry. Honors One-Variable Calculus was a fascinating class that explored the "math behind the math" of calculus. It was fascinating and got me very interested in abstract math- I may take a number theory class next year. Honors One-Variable Calc also fulfills the requirement for both calculus I and II, so if you think you can learn advanced math quickly and have a strong calculus background, it might be a class you could consider (even if you got calc credit).

Model UN is pretty great, I did a lot of conferences like yourself. JHU Model UN has two different teams, we have one that organizes a conference for high schoolers (it is a huge conference, has approximately 2000 delegates attending this year). As a college student you get the chance to chair and staff the debate, you can be involved in crisis or even as a Secretary General if you stay committed. We also have a competitive college-level model UN team that travels around and competes against other colleges. You can read more about it here.

As to what I like the most here, it is by far the people I meet. There are so many bright, talented and fascinating people here that I never remain bored. Also, the clubs here are a blast (particularly Model UN) and the classes keep me intellectually stimulated. I expected people here to be 'book smart' when I arrived, but almost everyone here is naturally-intelligent and good at something besides their schoolwork. Whether they be musicians, singers, dancers, debaters, artists or writers, everyone seems to have brought their own particular talent here.

Again, welcome to JHU. Happy Holidays!

BlancheBunny103 · « **Reply #4 on:** February 06, 2012, 01:58 AM »

Hi Ian
Can you pls tell me more about your experiences living at AMR?
Is there Internet 24/7 your dorm? Also, is there a 'lights out' time, and if so what time is it?

JHU_Ian · « **Reply #5 on:** February 06, 2012, 04:03 PM »

Hi Blanche,

Living in the AMRs has been great. I have met way more people than I would have met had I lived in the other buildings and bonded closely with a group of people around me. It's nice living in AMR II because you can just walk down the hall and meet new people everyday when their doors are open, which is not quite found in other dorms. The rooms, however, are smaller than the rooms in the other dorms but we get our bathrooms cleaned by staff daily and also get (arguably) the most fun dorm to live in. There is wireless internet 24/7 and there is no 'lights out' time. It is always interesting to see who you find awake in the hall at 4am!

Hope this helped. All the best,
Ian

samoan.brown · « **Reply #6 on:** February 12, 2012, 07:06 PM »

Hey Ian its Samoan! I am a senior in high school from Los Angeles,California and JHU is my first choice. I have been interested in this school ever since my fourth grade teacher thought this school was perfect for me and started calling me "Mrs. Johns Hopkins". Seeing as though you are from Milan, Italy I wanted to know how you were able to cope with being so far away from home.

JHU_Ian · « **Reply #7 on:** February 12, 2012, 08:27 PM »

Hi Samoan!

It is nice to hear you are so interested in Hopkins. Coping with being so far from my family and my home country has actually been much easier than I expected- I have rarely, if ever, felt homesick. The first two weeks of school were so jam-packed with events that there wasn't really any time to breathe and miss home. People here were so friendly to me from the start that I made a tight-knit group of friends even within the first month of school.
Also, I got very involved in campus quite rapidly (one of the great things about JHU) and the numerous activities I was involved in kept me too busy to feel homesick. In fact, today I got back from the Johns Hopkins Model United Nations Conference where I was a chair for a large committee, the UNDP, and it was one of the best experiences of my life.
Having so many different networks of friends and organizations has been a really good placebo to prevent homesickness. I would recommend you get involved as well! If, however, you do find yourself feeling homesick, Hopkins has a massive array of support groups (the counseling center, the peer-to-peer help room and many others) to help you adapt.
To sum it up, if JHU is your first choice, homesickness should not be among your list of worries!

Hope to see you here in the fall. All the best,
Ian

mingzhe94 · « **Reply #8 on:** November 22, 2012, 05:36 AM »

Hello Ian!

I am a student from Singapore. I am very interested in applying to JHU and intend to major in Chemistry. From your description, I understand that you are a Materials Science & Engineering major. I am sorry for having a rather poor understanding of the major/ minor system in the US. Is your major considered a Chemistry major?

In addition, may I also hear from you regarding the quality of the Chemistry undergraduate teaching and research at JHU? Are the professors accessible and approachable? To be honest, my education will be funded by a governmental agency as I cannot afford an overseas education so I need to choose my university very carefully. I am interested in JHU but from some rankings that I have found on the web, it appears as though the Chemistry programme at JHU pales in comparison with some of its other programmes. May I know your view on this? Sorry if I appear concerned with the ranking.

Thank you very much!

Cheers,
Ming Zhe

JHU_Ian · « **Reply #9 on:** November 24, 2012, 04:13 PM »

Hello Ming Zhe! Thanks for the post, I actually have a few friends here from Singapore like yourself.

I completely understand your concern about rankings, do not worry. While rankings of individual majors do matter a lot for graduate school, the specific rankings of your program are not as important for undergraduates. That being said, however, the overall ranking of your school does matter somewhat and being at a top 20 school in the world such as Hopkins will certainly be useful in going to graduate school or obtaining a job out of college. This is particularly true if you do well here, which you certainly can if you choose to put in the work and meet the professors (which is a good segue into the second part of your question). If I could give you one piece of advise about the rankings, it would be to attend the school you think will fit best for yourself and not just which is the highest ranked one.

To address the second part of your question, the professors here are extremely accessible and interesting. This is particularly true of the chemistry department (which I used to be a part of) since it is rather small. One of the reasons our chemistry department is not top-ranked is actaully because it is so small compared to other schools, comprising around 20-40 students per year as opposed to hundreds at larger schools. Going back to the accessibility, I know I mentioned this earlier in this thread but I actually got to know my organic chemistry professor on a first-name basis while being only a freshman here. Since the department is so small, there is a massive abundance of research opportunities all of the time (an important factor for getting into graduate school or joining the industry) and all of the department faculty love the chemistry majors. I think this makes the chemistry department here really unique and enjoyable.

To answer the last part of your question, I joined the department of materials science and engineering (changing from the chemsitry department, they are not the same but it is quite easy to major in both of them) because I wanted a more mathematically-rigorous approach to chemistry than the one offered by the chemistry department. Whereas chemistry undergraduates focus more on organic chemistry and related fields (spectroscopy and synthetic/analytic techniques), materials scientists and engineers focus a lot on crystallography, polymer engineering and advanced inorganic chemistry. That being said, however, I really enjoyed my time in the chemistry department and thought organic chemistry was one of the most interesting classes I took all of freshman year.

I hope this answers your question, feel free to message me again if I was unclear or if you have any further questions.
All the best,

Ian

mingzhe94 · « **Reply #10 on:** November 25, 2012, 10:14 AM »

Dear Ian,

Thank you so much for your help! :) I have decided to apply to Hopkins as I think I will prefer a small Chemistry class. I am glad to hear that Hopkins have a Singaporean presence.

By the way, because I am mildly colourblind, may I know if a large part of the Chemistry coursework (generally speaking) involves some form of colour identification? I should have no problem identifying most colors but I hope to ask you just in case. I am red-green colourblind. However, I really like Chemistry so I still hope to major in it.

In addition, apart from material science, what other subject areas can a Chemistry major student double major in?

Thanks once again! :)

Cheers,
Ming Zhe

JHU_Ian · « **Reply #11 on:** November 25, 2012, 08:47 PM »

No problem at all, happy to help!

I don't really foresee you having any problems with your colorblindness and the chemistry coursework, and even if there was we have an entire office (The Office of Student Disability Services) dedicated to helping you out with that kind of issue. The only time it might be an issue is during lab when you have to identify the color of a solution, which in all honesty is so trivial that a professor would never mark you down for mistakenly identifying the wrong color. Plus, we have really cool spectrometers that can do all of the color identification scientifically wavelength-by-wavelength. I actually know that one of my professors this semester is colorblind, so do not worry :D.

Honestly, one of the great things about the chemistry major here is that you can get a second major in literally anything if you plan out your schedule correctly-- writing seminars, biology, computer science, English, history just to name a few. Like I said before, it is even possible to double major in an engineering discipline and chemistry if that is something you are very set on. This is particularly true if you come in with AP or IB Chemistry credit since it allows you to skip the entire year of freshman chemistry.

Again, feel free to post here if you have any other questions!

All the best,
Ian

mingzhe94 · « **Reply #12 on:** November 25, 2012, 11:06 PM »

Dear Ian,

I am really reassured to hear that my colorblindness will likely not affect my coursework. Thanks! I think I will be interested in a double major in Chemistry and Physics.

Just one last question, if I am applying with my GCE A Level results, can I skip the freshman year of Chemistry?

Thank you very much! Please have a nice day! :) It is great to see Hopkins students being so kind and friendly.

Cheers,
Ming Zhe

JHU_Ian · « **Reply #13 on:** November 28, 2012, 01:38 PM »

Yes, you can. You can find more information about credits on this page. Good luck on your application to Hopkins :)

All the best,
Ian

mingzhe94 · « **Reply #14 on:** November 29, 2012, 04:59 AM »

Dear Ian,

Thank you very much! All the best for your studies! :)

Cheers,
Ming Zhe

Cedric WYX · « **Reply #15 on:** December 13, 2012, 10:07 AM »

Hi Ian,

I'm a new applicant to JHU this year for Class 2017. I'm from China, but because my recent years of study in Singapore, my application will be viewed as a Singapore student. I'm crafting out my essays for JHU supplement. Before I do that, I want to know more about the school first. Hence, because I'm going to do chemical engineering, and you are an engineering student, will you tell me more about engineering program at JHU? Can I double major in applied maths?

Thank you so much!
Cedric

JHU_Ian · « **Reply #16 on:** December 13, 2012, 12:39 PM »

Hi Cedric,

Engineering here is really unique in the fact that it is really interdisciplinary-- not only is it possible to double major, but you are actually encouraged to. No engineering major takes only classes in their engineering discipline-- mechanical engineers take some materials or biomedical engineering classes, chemical and biomolecular engineers take some biomedical engineering classes and vice versa. It is also possible to double major in a field outside of engineering such as public health or international studies, but that requires a little more planning in advance on your behalf.

Double majoring in applied math is actually really easy since you will be taking so many math classes for engineering regardless-- it just takes 2-3 more math classes to pick up an applied math major. For this reason, a very large portion of engineers here get a second major in applied math. You can also get a major in pure mathematics with relative ease due to the fact you are taking many math classes anyway.
As I mentioned above, it is also possible to major or minor outside of engineering/math since there is no core curriculum here-- one of the factors that makes Hopkins really unique.

I posted about research earlier on in this thread, but all students at JHU are strongly encouraged to get involved in research. Around 70% of our undergraduates will be involved in research before they graduate, and the research opportunities (especially for chemical engineers) are abundant. From research at the medical school to the school of public health, you can virtually research whatever you want. I am actually doing research with a team of post-doctorates at the School of Medicine. This makes Hopkins quite unique and is a great opportunity if you are planning to go to graduate school.

Speaking of graduate school, the department of chemical and biomolecular engineering here also has a 5 year bachelors/masters program where you can get both a graduate and undergraduate degree in 5 years from Hopkins. If you are interested in that, feel free to ask JHU_Greco about it (class of 2013 on the forums) since he will be partaking in that.

All the best,
Ian

Cedric WYX · « **Reply #17 on:** December 14, 2012, 03:09 AM »

Hey Ian,

Thank you very much for your information. Can you tell me more about life outside the classroom at JHU and in Baltimore? (Btw, may I email you because I'm going to Milan next March, I want to ask you something about there?)

Best
Cedric

JHU_Ian · « **Reply #18 on:** December 14, 2012, 01:27 PM »

Hi Cedric,

Yeah I certainly can. Baltimore is a really quirky city (hence it being known as "charm city") in that every neighborhood has a completely different character to it. Fell's Point which is downtown (home to one of the biggest Halloween parties in the US) and Hampden are hip neighborhoods that are a little more upscale, Charles Village where JHU is is pretty yuppie and fun, and the Inner Harbor/ Mount Washington areas downtown towards where the medical school is have a bustling nightlife (clubs, nice restaurants, and more).

I'd encourage you to take a look at this link , a forum topic devoted to what makes Baltimore great and explore this link as well-- both of which highlight some of the cool things you can do here in Baltimore. My favorite experience so far has actually been attending a "block party" in the street near one of my friend's apartment buildings for the Orioles game-- something I would have never expected to occur in the upscale area that she lives in. Also be sure to check out my blog to see highlights of things I have done around campus over the past year and a half.

Just to name a few, we have a really nice aquarium, a baseball stadium, the inner harbor, crabcake restaurants, a Hard Rock Cafe', a hookah bar, several night clubs, many bars and more less than 10-20 minutes away from campus. Check out the links above for more information.

Good luck with your application!

All the best,
Ian

Cedric WYX · « **Reply #19 on:** December 14, 2012, 11:56 PM »

Hi Ian

Thank you very much for your information. After doing some research about JHU, I find that one of the key spirits of JHU is original creativity, right? Is there any other spirit that the school emphasizes?

Thanks
Cedric

JHU_Ian · « **Reply #20 on:** December 15, 2012, 03:55 PM »

Hi Cedric,

While I cannot speak on behalf of what the administration of the university wants, I can speak on the values that I have seen are important. If I were to summarize them, I think they would be creativity & originality (as you said), honesty, drive to succeed and resilience. I think all of those are minimum criteria for being a Hopkins student, but that is just my subjective opinion. Ultimately, every individual brings something unique to Hopkins that makes them a great member of the community.
If you are asking this because of wanting something to write about for your university essay, I would personally recommend emphasizing what makes you unique as a person and why that would make you a good member of the Hopkins community instead of trying to write what you think the school "wants to hear".

All the best,
Ian

JHU_Ian · « **Reply #21 on:** January 31, 2013, 06:15 PM »

Question:
I was admitted but denied from the BME program at Hopkins. I am currently searching for another major to pick. Are there any resources I should be aware of while making this decision, and could you personally offer any advice? I noticed that you are in Biomaterials, which I am quite interested in actually.

Answer:
Yes, there are quite a few. I would suggest taking a look at three different programs that we have here:

Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering (ChemBE)-- Focus in Molecular and Cellular Bioengineering
Materials Science and Engineering-- Focus in Biomaterials
Mechanical Engineering-- Focus in Biomechanics
Biophysics

Each of these has their differences. If you are more interested in processes and chemistry, I would strongly suggest taking a look at ChemBE. If you are interested in biosynthetic materials and tissues, I would take a look at Biomaterials, which is what I am interested in and currently studying. If you have a strong interest in physics and mechanics, the biomechanics is a really cool program that allows you to take several classes in prosthetic development and mechatronics, maybe leading you to eventually study computer-integrated surgery which is a minor offered here. Lastly, but not least, biophysics is a great option. It is not actually an engineering degree, but it covers many of the same topics that most engineering degrees do (physics, chemistry, calculus, etc). Biophysics focuses more on biological protein phenomena such as protein folding and so forth, and our program (I believe) in biophysics is number 1 in the nation.

As for advice, I would suggest you explore all of these options when you get here on campus. Not all of these majors overlap, so it is up to you to decide which suits your interests best. I think biomaterials is awesome because the materials department is very small compared to the ChemBE one and the faculty get to know you on a first-name basis, but don't let that be your sole deciding factor in picking your major. Most people switch majors more than once before settling on one (myself included) so do not lose sleep over it!

All the best,
Ian

mat54 · « **Reply #22 on:** April 19, 2013, 06:20 PM »

Hi. I'm Michael and I am an incoming freshman. I am planning on studying Materials Science and Engineering and wanted to know a little about the difference between the tracks within MSE. Also, how has your experience with the MSE department been?

JHU_Ian · « **Reply #23 on:** April 19, 2013, 06:28 PM »

Hi Michael,

Congrats on getting into Hopkins!
Our two tracks are biomaterials and nanotechnology. In order to be certified as having a "concentration" on one of the tracks, you essentially need to take 6-8 extra credits specifically in that area, complete your senior design project in that area and take a specific engineering elective in that area as well. For biomaterials, typical classes include biomaterials lab (in which you look at hydrogels and stimuli-sensitive materials, etc), Host Responses to Biomaterials, Biomolecular Materials or Biosensors.
The nanotechnology track works the same way, and typical classes include anything ranging from quantum dots to micro/nano structured materials and devices or nanophotonics.
I really like the MSE department because it is very small and I know many of my professors on a first-name basis. The person I consider my mentor in the department is Dr. Mao, a world-renowned biomaterials scientist and my former academic adviser. We have a stellar faculty here, with people truly at the forefront of their fields, and the newly-founded Hopkins Extreme Materials Institute (HEMI) has opened up even more possibilities for MSE majors.

If you have any other or more specific questions, feel free to post again!

All the best,
Ian

mat54 · « **Reply #24 on:** April 19, 2013, 10:11 PM »

Ian,

As a MSE major, is it better to have a Mac or a PC, or does it not matter that much?

Michael

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Author Topic: Meet JHU_Ian - Milan, Italy (Read 2736 times)