Students

Ph.D. students Chang Chen and Ke Wang recognized in graduate paper competition

UC Davis biological systems engineers Chang Chen and Ke Wang placed first and third, respectively, in the 2021 graduate student paper competition hosted by the Association of Overseas Chinese Agricultural, Biological and Food Engineers (AOCABFE, also known as AOC). The competition is held every year at the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) Annual Meeting.

Kathryn Tarver: Machining for a Better World

Growing up, Kathryn Tarver would have never believed she would one day be an engineer. Now, she is graduating with a B.S. in biological systems engineering, having become a dedicated machinist and problem-solver.

Student Spotlight: Wayne Low Kum

When Wayne Low Kum graduates this spring with a B.S. in biological systems engineering and a minor in psychology, it will mark the end of a journey over 20 years in the making. Wayne started at UC Davis as a first-year student in the late 1990s, but returned to school in 2020 to finish his degree after dropping out his senior year.

“It’s never too late to learn or to go back to school, and when an opportunity like this presents itself, you can’t be scared,” he said. “There’s no shame in learning.”

Graduate students Achala Rao and Yike Chen named 2020-21 Business Development Fellows

Biological and agricultural engineering (BAE) graduate students Achala Rao and Yike Chen were selected to the 2020-21 class of Business Development Fellows by the UC Davis Mike and Renee Child Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. As fellows, Rao and Chen are part of a diverse, interdisciplinary group of graduate students and postdoctoral scholars from across UC Davis who will spend the 2020-21 school year developing the commercial potential of their research.

Ph.D. student Chang Chen honored in Graduate Student Paper Competition

Biological systems engineering Ph.D. student Chang Chen was honored for his research at this year’s American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) Annual International Meeting. His paper, “Energy and quality analyses of off-ground harvested almonds under hot air column drying” received third place in the Association of Overseas Chinese Agricultural, Biological and Food Engineers’ (AOCABFE, also known as AOC) Graduate Paper Competition Award.

Student Spotlight: Ismael Mayanja

Biological systems engineering M.S. student Ismael Mayanja is a problem solver. Inspired by the need to help farmers in his home country of Uganda, Mayanja is refining his skills as a postharvest engineer at UC Davis to design machines that help reduce crop loss after harvest and improve food production systems around the world.

Precision Agriculture: Genetic Research Aids in Food Production

Vivian Vuong’s ’17, Ph.D. ’21, drive to study agricultural engineering stemmed from her undergraduate research with Biological and Agricultural Engineering Professor and Smart Farm Big Idea Champion David Slaughter. Today she’s working on gathering genetic data on plants to increase yield in the field – a method that can improve food access and the environment.