Ever since I was little, my grandpa would show me all the different inventions he had sketched out. From something small like a tool to pick up dog poop, to a revolutionary idea for an air-powered vehicle, he was always inventing things, and I admired him for it. He was a mechanical engineer in the Soviet Union, but because of the language barrier he had to forego his engineering pursuits when he moved to America to support my mom. For all that he sacrificed, I hope that his dreams of innovation can be fulfilled vicariously through my own engineering accomplishments.

  Studying at RPI opened my mind to all the different engineering opportunities available to me. What drew me to manufacturing was seeing how much the field can still grow. I always thought it was cool to build stuff, to see the latest advancements in technology, and to experience the marvel of electricity, but once I came to RPI I saw how those areas of interest could mesh. Now that I've graduated, I plan to leverage my unique background and experiences in engineering to drive change and develop creative solutions to challenging problems. For example, I envision a prototyping shop with CNC machines all interconnected through the cloud to optimize low-volume manufacturing. They would be controlled by a master algorithm that determines how to make any part and sends instructions to the automated machines through an assembly-line format, whereby any design can be fabricated on-demand, automatically.

  In my free time, I enjoy skiing, playing basketball, and hiking. I've completed the Devil's Path and the Presidential Traverse, two of the most difficult hikes on the East Coast and I hope to continue pushing myself physically as well as mentally through my extracurricular pursuits. Finding new challenges to tackle and pushing myself to excel drives me to be better at these sports and be a better person overall. I am also passionate about adventure and exploring the world. I recently went on a month-long roadtrip exploring 8 states and 8 national parks in the Pacific Northwest. Other than outdoorsy pursuits, I also like to spend time indoors and play boardgames with my friends, watch a movie, or rewrite ancient history playing a Rome Total War campaign.