BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN CHEMICAL AND BIOMOLECULAR ENGINEERING

Internships

Natural Gas Power Plant

Company Name: Vistra Corporation 
Position: Intern
Job Responsibility: Monitored and maintained the systems of a gas-powered engineering plant. 
Time: Winter 2025 and Spring 2026​
Achievements: Identified a 2-inch sized leak on the ACC unit that contributed to back pressure on the system

Surface Water Treatment Plant

Company Name: Aquarion Water Association 
Position: Automation and Control Systems Intern
Job Responsibility:  Standardized old programmable logic controller code and upgraded it to a new system.
Time: Summer 2026
Achievements: Mapped a programmable logic controller (PLC) to a fully designed human machine interface (HMI) for a pumping station in Oxford, Connecticut.

NSF SURE Experience

Program: National Science Foundation (NSF) Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE)
Project: Design of an Enzyme Responsive Polyolefin as a Programmable Antifouling Material​

Research Presentation & Conferences:

• Accepted to present at the American Institute of Chemical Engineers’ Student Technical Competition in Minneapolis
• Conducted NSF-Funded SURE research on designing enzyme responsive polyolefin antifouling materials.

Awards & Honors:

• AIChE Donald F. Othmer Second Year Student Academic Excellence Award (2026)
• Connecticut Technology Council Women of Innovation Finalist: Named a finalist in the Collegian Innovation and Leadership category for outstanding leadership and contributions in STEM.

Time: May 2025 – August 2026 (Continuing during the academic year)

NSF NEU Experience

Program: National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU)
Project: Fate of PFAS during Combustion of Municipal Solid Waste
Job responsibility: Participated in an NSF-funded REU researching PFAS contamination in waste-to-energy systems and their environmental impacts.
Time: May – August 2026 (continuing during the academic year)
Achievements: Accepted to present at the American Institute of Chemical Engineers’ Undergraduate Poster Competition in Minneapolis

SWE Connecticut Scholarship

Award: Jean R. Beers Scholarship
Organization: Society of Women Engineers Connecticut
Year: 2026
Summary: Received the 2026 Jean R. Beers Scholarship in recognition of academic excellence, engineering leadership, and commitment to outreach
Related Leadership: Vice President of the Society of Women Engineers and active leader in engineering outreach initiatives that support student development and promote opportunities for women in STEM

NASA Connecticut Space Grant Consortium (CTSGC)​ - UG Research grant

Company name: NASA Connecticut Space Grant Consortium (CTSGC)​
Position: Undergraduate Research Grant Recipient​
Job responsibility: Completing independent undergraduate research on the techno-economic feasibility and life cycle assessment of catalytic carbon dioxide reduction to green ethylene.
Time: Fall 2026 – Spring 2027
Achievements: Awarded competitive grant funding through the NASA CTSGC to lead research on sustainable chemical manufacturing​.

Internship Information

Company name: NASA Johnson Space Center
Position: Pathways Intern​
Job responsibility: Rotated between EP3 Fuel Cell, CM33 ARTEMIS PROP/BOOSTER, and EC6 Advanced Thermal System.​
Time: Spring 2025 - Summer 2027
Achievements: Generated multiple tools for analysis on heat and gas flow. Designed an evaporator/condenser line for a fuel cell. Certified displays and generated attitude timelines for the Artemis II mission.

Company Name: LANXESS
Position: R&D Intern
Job responsibility: Helped with the production of samples, designed test stands, and did economical analysis on products using only in-house materials
Time: Summer 2024 and Summer 2025

DOE-ORISE Fellowship

Company name: DOE - National Energy and Technology Laboratory
Position: Intern
Job responsibility: Process, analyze, results of gas hydrate reservoir simulations.
Time: Fall 2026 – Spring 2027
Achievements: Produced figures for manuscript, where I will be listed as a co-author, alongside Dr. Nagasree Garapati and employees in the DOE.

Internship Information

Company name: BYK USA LLC
Position: Technical Service Intern
Job responsibility: Formulating an aqueous paper barrier coating using various polymers, base resins, clays, and wax emulsions. I tested over 250 blends for compatibility, viscosity, and barrier coating performance.
Time: Summer 2026
Achievements: Identified a barrier coating which meets PFA’s-level performance, while using more sustainable materials. Used data optimization software to statistically validate holistic trends in test results.

Company name: LATICRETE International Inc.
Position: Process Engineering Intern
Job responsibility: Conduct process capability analysis with Minitab and assist in pilot batch studies
Time: June 1, 2025 – August 15, 2025
Achievements: Completed process capability analysis on all Bethany and Texas products.

NSF SURE Experience

Program: Summer Undergraduate Research Experience​
Project: Measuring the effects of Pseudomonas aeruginosaPAO1 biofilms on mucus viscoelasticity and removal through rheometer analysis ​
Job responsibility: Participated in SURF as a Research assistant and conducted laboratory research on mucin rheology and bacterial biofilms, performed rheological testing using an MCR 92 rheometer, and collected and analyzed data to study changes in mucin flow behavior.​
Time: May – August 2026 (continuing during the academic year)​
Achievements: Accepted to present at the American Institute of Chemical Engineers’ Undergraduate Technical Presentation Competition​

MADISON LIGUORI '23
Tagliatela College of Engineering
Chemical Engineering, B.S.

For Madison Liguori ’23, the University’s Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) program enabled er to research how skin responds to various stimuli – something that, she believes, will be invaluable as she pursues a career in the cosmetics industry.

This program is STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math)-designated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, designed to instill in our students the technical expertise that employers told us they are looking for in their future hires.

STEM-designation also enables international graduates to remain in the United States for an additional 24 months after graduation to receive training through work experience.

What it is: A community for future engineers who love solving problems and building ideas.

Community focus: Innovation, teamwork, and real-world design thinking.

Experiential learning: Engineering ELC students connect classroom concepts to real systems through site visits, design-focused challenges, and faculty-guided exploration of how engineering principles show up in everyday environments.

Adventures: Past Engineering ELC students visited Six Flags New England to explore how real-world engineering principles come to life through roller coasters and large-scale amusement rides, examining the physics behind motion, speed, and force, learning how mechanical systems are designed to withstand extreme stress, and discovering how engineers use data, modeling, and testing to ensure rider safety. After breaking down the science, students experienced it firsthand — riding the coasters they just studied and seeing engineering in action at full speed.

“I cried when I left the U.S. because I was scared,” confessed computer science major Isaura Franco ’26. “And, I cried again when I had to leave Italy because I didn’t want to leave.” It was clear that returning home brought a bit of reverse culture shock. Things were quieter and less connected in comparison to Italy’s lively, social atmosphere. Summing up her experience in three words, she smiled and said, “beautiful, life-changing, and fun."

Spend a semester at the University’s satellite campus in Prato, Italy, or participate in hundreds of opportunities that enable you to learn about and immerse yourself in cultures, customs, and traditions from around the globe.

William Adams, an emeritus professor of computer science, led a program for many years that brought students to our campus in Tuscany, Italy, in the cradle of the Renaissance.

"I tell parents that their son or daughter will be standing taller when they see them again after their European experience," said Adams. "Upon their return, parents often attest to this fact."

We are proud to be a university that's continuously growing and making positive changes for our students and the community. Our achievements are a testament to our dedicated faculty and staff and the cutting-edge programs they develop; our talented students, who continue to be engaged members of the community; and our alumni, who consistently become leaders in their chosen fields.

In 2026, the University of New Haven was ranked a top-tier university in the North region by U.S. News & World Report in its annual "Best Colleges" rankings. And, for the 10th year in a row, we have been recognized as one of the nation's best institutions for undergraduate education by The Princeton Review. In addition, our Tagliatela College of Engineering is rated among the top third in the country in our category in U.S. News' rankings of the best undergraduate engineering programs.

Our Pompea College of Business is accredited by AACSB International, placing it among the Top 6 Percent Worldwide. We are also a proud member of The New American Colleges and Universities (NAC&U), an exclusive national consortium of selective, small to mid-size (2,000-7,500 students) independent colleges and universities that are dedicated to the purposeful integration of liberal education, professional studies, and civic engagement.