vishnu-era-14
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
6<br />
A QUARTERLY NEWS PUBLICATION FROM SRI VISHNU EDUCATIONAL SOCIETY<br />
GOAL POST<br />
C H A S I N G T H E D R E A M S<br />
It feels exciting to write as an alumnus, when many of<br />
you can always drop by or give me a call and I can talk<br />
all about it. Oh, don't scratch your heads, read on my<br />
friends.<br />
I was a fresh graduate from BVRIT Narsapur with an oncampus<br />
job and enjoying my vacation in late July<br />
before it would be time to join the MNC…Yeah! You<br />
know what? I am a Biomedical Engineer, but hey I made<br />
it to India's top IT firm…so why not? I was pretty neutral<br />
about the decision apart from my initial excitement and<br />
plans for the next two years running in my head. Soon,<br />
all my planning went kaput, that's lif e, and<br />
opportunities are thrown at you at unexpected<br />
intervals. I got to know that Prof. Alan Rux, heading<br />
Assistive Technology Laboratory at University of<br />
Massachusetts Lowell was visiting BVRIT to setup a<br />
similar center in our campus.<br />
When the professor arrived in Hyd<strong>era</strong>bad, even before<br />
we met I got a chance to talk to him over the phone; he<br />
wanted to see my final year project “Smart Hat”. In the<br />
final year, I was determined to work on a project that has<br />
direct application in Biomedical Engineering. I wanted<br />
to attempt something distinctive that will set us apart.<br />
“Smart Hat” was an assistive device to help children<br />
with Spina Bifida, a rare nervous disorder. Immediately,<br />
while I was still waiting on my offer letter, I got a chance<br />
to build the Assistive Technology Lab at BVRIT in<br />
collaboration with the international team from UMass<br />
Lowell. I thought what better opportunity than this; I<br />
may as well get some experience interestingly enough<br />
in my own field.<br />
The next one year was a very exciting ride, visiting<br />
rehabilitation institutions, meeting clients, organizing<br />
student projects, making them work, participating in<br />
competitions and winning accolades but you know<br />
what, in this process I had ditched my<br />
MNC offer letter<br />
and a higher paying job.<br />
I received<br />
i m m e n s e<br />
encourage<br />
ment from<br />
o u r<br />
C h a i r m a n<br />
S r i K . V<br />
Vishnu Raju<br />
g a r u a n d<br />
Prof. Alan Rux<br />
to pursue MS<br />
a t U M a s s<br />
Lowell. I had<br />
a l r e a d y<br />
attempted GRE<br />
and got a good<br />
score at the end<br />
of my second<br />
y e a r o f<br />
engineering. But<br />
convincing my<br />
parents to let me<br />
move to the US<br />
was a daunting<br />
task. It<br />
took two people from UMass Lowell, Prof. Rux<br />
and his associate Mrs. Senait Hailesselassie's<br />
assurance to let them agree. Soon after, I was following<br />
my dreams to pursue higher education in the US, to<br />
explore, to be independent and to be someone.<br />
My first steps in the US were set in Boston. Prof. Rux and<br />
Senait patiently explained every silly question that had<br />
occurred to me. Boston is a world leader in innovation<br />
and entrepreneurship and is a university hub, always<br />
vibrant with young students all over the place studying<br />
at top notch universities including Harvard and MIT.<br />
The city will always remain close to me. I was offered<br />
full Research Assistantship at the Centre for<br />
Electromagnetic Materials and Optical Systems that<br />
covered my tuition and also paid<br />
the monthly<br />
stipend. I got to<br />
wo rk w i t h a<br />
y o u n g l a d y<br />
Professor from<br />
China and her<br />
team of course,<br />
mostly Chinese.<br />
A t f i r s t , t h e<br />
n a t u r e o f<br />
r e s e a r c h<br />
happening at the<br />
University level in<br />
the US blew my<br />
mind; it is all very<br />
re a l a n d t re n d<br />
setting, most of the<br />
t i m e s i n d u s t r y<br />
straightaway tests<br />
a n d a d o p t s t h e<br />
technology. In our<br />
laboratory we built<br />
optical sensors to<br />
mea<br />
sure blood pressure,<br />
acoustic pressure during explosions in a war<br />
field and their damages, temp<strong>era</strong>ture sensors to<br />
measure the change in temp<strong>era</strong>ture during machining<br />
and also biosensors to detect bacteria and virus.<br />
All along I had my share of adventures, right from white<br />
water rafting in the Hudson to random plans of night<br />
trekking and star gazing in the middle of a forest; zip<br />
lining in Colorado to sky diving in Massachusetts. I<br />
made friends and memories that will remain forever.<br />
Also contradictory to the trend of extending the study<br />
period, I had taken extra credits to finish Masters in<br />
three semesters so I can get to work soon. With the<br />
history of most of my seniors switching to software jobs<br />
after finishing masters in Biomedical Engineering, I did<br />
not want to follow them. I was kind of adamant to work in<br />
my own area of interest. At the time, prospects for an<br />
international student to get a full time job in such<br />
uncommon fields were not very encouraging. But<br />
immediately after I finished, I started working for a<br />
star tup called Immunotrex Biologics under<br />
Massachusetts Medical Device Development Center,<br />
soon enough I got another opportunity and had to<br />
relocate from Massachusetts to Dallas, Texas. It was<br />
time to leave my mentors and start a new life in a new<br />
city and with a new job. Medisend International gave<br />
me an opportunity to train biomedical professionals<br />
working in the hospitals all over the world. We also<br />
designed training programs for the American Vet<strong>era</strong>ns.<br />
I had an amazing experience and loved working with<br />
the coolest colleagues who would often try to pull my<br />
leg, I was the only female in the technical division<br />
hence was also pampered a little. I was really happy<br />
and content that I could go and get what I believed in,<br />
life was easy and smooth, but I never belonged there.<br />
“Home Is Where Your Heart Is”, for me it was India. In<br />
India it was my alma mater. Now, when I look back<br />
everything becomes clear, I followed the dots which I<br />
never knew made a full circle. As Prof. Rux says, “Keep<br />
doing things, you will automatically be guided”.