CENS Alumni Profile

CENS will regularly feature one of our CENS scholar alumni on this page. We will first highlight Jane Qu, with an excerpt from her interview in the Summer/Fall 2006 issue of Diversity/Careers in Engineering & Information Technology.

Jane Qu: EE internship with an emphasis on computer science

Jane Qu, an EE junior at University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA, Los Angeles, CA), heard about her internship at UCLA's Center for Embedded Networked Sensing Program through SWE, of which she is a member. She says it's a good sign if a company publicizes internship offerings through organizations like SWE, which support diverse student groups.

The variety of research projects piqued Jane Qu's interest in interning at CENS. Qu, an EE major scheduled to graduate in spring 2007, has continued to volunteer at CENS during the school year and is leaning towards graduate school because of her experience.

"With this internship you get to take your time to learn the technology, and there is a lot of encouragement to get into academia and research. It's to educate undergraduates about what graduate school is like," Qu says.

Like the Internet, the revolutionary ENS technologies are large-scale, distributed systems composed of smart sensors and actuators, except they are embedded in the physical world. ENS systems monitor and collect information on such diverse subjects as plankton colonies, endangered species, soil and air contaminants, medical patients and buildings, bridges and other man-made structures.

During the summer of 2005 Qu worked with software that communicates with a sensor network used by field biologists to track environmental changes like temperature variation. Because the non-technical biologists needed software that was more user-friendly, Qu's job was to develop a website that would interface with the communications software and provide easier access to data.

When the summer ended she continued to volunteer with Dr William Kaiser, an EE professor at UCLA. Their project focused on the networked information mechanical systems (NIMS), technology to move a sensor through a desired area. "The idea there was that field biologists could set up the tool and attach a sensor onto it, calibrate it, and then allow it to measure data in the way that they want," Qu says.

"It's currently being tested across a couple of rivers, but there¹s still a lot of work to be done," Qu says.

Qu remarks that she enjoyed the programming project this past summer. "It was a different type of electrical engineering, with a heavy emphasis on computer science. I'm interested in computer science as it relates to hardware. I can probably continue in a field that combines computer science with what I've studied."

"You should apply broadly to give yourself more options," Qu adds. "It's also very helpful to be aware of the resources available at your school. If an employer that you're interested in comes to campus, schedule a meeting with its recruiters. There's no better way to contact the people you might want to work for!"