Meet Your Project Manager
Caroline Whitehead
(4th Year Geological Engineering)
Welcome to Queen’s Engineering Sci ’26!
My name is Caroline, and I am a 4th year Geological engineering student. I am so excited to meet you all and help you through APSC 100.
This summer I worked for FEAS as the APSC 200 Development intern. I worked alongside the department to develop course content, test projects, and research for the second-year projects.
I have been a competitive fencer for 12 years and have been a member of the Queen’s Fencing Team for my time at Queen’s. This year I will be the team Captain for the fencing team. If you would like to try a new sport or have some fencing experience, feel free to reach out to me! This will be my second year as a Project Manager, and I loved my experience last year. I am also an Englinks Personal and Workshop Tutor.
I love being active, especially running! I am training for my second half marathon currently and hope to one day run a marathon and triathlon. I love being outdoors, climbing, camping, hiking, canoeing, and kayaking. On a rainy day you can also find me curled up with a book.
Best of luck with First Year and your time at Queen’s. I encourage you to get as involved as you can, there is something for everyone here! If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact me, I’d love to chat with you!
Pratah Bhatt
(4th Year Electrical Engineering with Internship)
Hey Sci 26! My name is Pratah, and I am going into my 4th year of Electrical Engineering. I am coming back from a 12-month internship at Ontario Power Generation (OPG) in Projects Design Engineering and a summer internship at Bell in Customer Operations. At OPG I worked on a variety of projects ranging from working with VBA and Power BI to handle departmental project data to engaging in oversight activities of engineering change projects. At Bell I worked in a business capacity where I got a crash course into the complexities of delivering a consistent customer experience.
At Queen’s I love to be involved in the community and meet new people. My other interests are in hiking, biking, snowboarding, golf, and my personal favourite, eating. Look forward to meeting you this coming term.
Marton Pandy
(4th year Mechanical Engineering)
Hi Sci’26! My name is Marton and I am in my 4th year of Mechanical Engineering. APSC 100 was a very beneficial course for me, and I look forward to helping you all develop your engineering skills!
This past summer, I worked as an intern at TD, working on the Vulnerability Management team in the Technology Platforms sector. I am interested in developing efficient solutions by automating programs to extract information.
In my spare time, I enjoy playing hockey intramurals and teeing it up at the local municipal golf course. In Kingston, you can find me most days along the waterfront trail on a jog!
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out at marton.pandy@queensu.ca. I look forward to meeting you all in September!
Peter Matthews
(4th year Electrical Engineering with Internship)
Howdy Sci’26! My name is Peter and I’m entering my 4th year of Electrical Engineering. I just completed a 12-month internship as a Physical Design Engineer at AMD, and while I’m completing my 4th year of undergrad I’ll also be working on the first year of my Master’s Degree through the Queen’s 4+1 program. Throughout my time at Queen’s I’ve been involved in the Engineering Society and QRET, and I’ve also been a TA for courses like APSC143 (1st year programming) and APSC221 (economics and business for engineers).
I’m super excited to meet all of you and help guide you through your APSC100 experience! APSC100 is a great introduction to the engineering design process, and it will start to equip you with many of the soft skills required to succeed in the workplace. I can personally confirm that the skills taught in APSC100 and subsequent upper-year design courses helped me tremendously during my internship!
Congratulations on starting your Queen’s Engineering journey, and please don’t hesitate to reach out to me with any questions you might have!
Hannah Kruizinga
(4th Year Civil Engineering with internship)
Hello, hello! My name is Hannah, and I am a fifth-year Civil Engineering student. I’m currently on internship with Aecon Group Inc. where I aid the estimating team bid jobs. Throughout my time at Queen’s, I’ve worked as a Technician’s Assistant in the Ellis Lab’s, an EngLinks Workshop Tutor, and a Mod 1 and 3 Project Manager (this is my second time around). I’ve also enjoyed playing soccer and dodgeball intramurals, being involved with Power to Change and Geneva house, and being a FREC.
I love, love, love tossing a frisbee, baking/cooking, board games, and hiking! I also really love bridges. I can’t wait to see what this semester has in store but in the meantime I’m excited to meet and work alongside you through the range of design projects in APSC 100 this year.
Brandon Chung
(3rd Year Mechanical Engineering)
Hey Sci’26! My name is Brandon and I am heading into my 3rd year of Mechanical Engineering here at Queen’s. I am super excited to work with all of you in APSC 100 both in Mod 1 & 3. This course has taught me both technical and interpersonal skills that have helped further develop my professional career. You will get the unique opportunity to work with real clients and gain valuable industry related experience. As a PM, I hope to support your team thoughout the project deliver process and provide guidance not only in this course, but outside of academics in discipline selection, career pathways, etc.
This past summer, I interned at TMG as the engineering project coordinator. During the internship I gained valuable project management experience in planning, execution, and communication between client/stakeholders. Every day was different which I enjoyed because I was constantly learning and taking on new projects. The highlight of this internship was during the last month when I got the opportunity to fly out for 2 weeks and work with one of our clients at their mine site located in Northern BC. If you have any internship questions please reach out I would love to share more of my internship experience.
Outside of academia, I have devoted my time to being a student-athlete for the Men’s Varsity Rowing Team. In addition, I have been a part of many different extra-curricular activities from being the Sponsorship Coordinator at CIRQUE (Conference on Industry and Resources: Queen’s Engineering), the Partnership Executive on QUANTT (Queen’s University Algorithmic Network & Trading Team), and a member of QSET (Queen’s Space Engineering Team). Other hobbies I have are powerlifting, hiking, and spending time outdoors.
I look forward to meeting all of you and if you have any questions or just want to chat, feel free to email me at brandon.chung@queensu.ca.
Welcome to Queen’s!
Jonah Opler
(4th Year EngPhys Comp with Internship)
Hey Sci ’26, Jonah here.
I am in my last year of Engineering Physics and am so pleased to be working as a project manager for APSC 100 this year. I am excited to meet and work with amazing first years and I look forward to helping you along the way as well!
Last year I worked as an intern at HGC Engineering, an acoustical engineering firm in Mississauga. This job was perfectly up my alley as I love both science and music – turns out a lot of people in the company were in the same boat! We even had some jam sessions after work.
I’m also big into theatre and am involved in various roles in the Engineering Society, so please feel free to ask me about getting involved at Queen’s!
Looking forward to meeting this amazing incoming class – welcome!
Aaron Meehan
(4th Year Chemical Engineering with Internship)
Hey Sci 26! Welcome to Queen’s Engineering. My name is Aaron and I am in my fourth year of Chemical Engineering (process option). I am excited to work with all of you. I found APSC 100 to be extremely valuable to develop the key skills needed to be successful in engineering design and practice.
In 2021 I completed a 12 month internship working as a Process Engineering Intern with Kellogg Canada Inc. In this role I managed a number of process optimization engineering projects to streamline operational efficiencies and deliver over $1 MM in cost savings for the plant. One of my bigger projects was co-managing the design, implementation and control of a new bulk ingredient delivery system for the plants cereal production process.
During my time at Queen’s I have worked as an academic tutor for the Engineering Society (EngLinks). In this position I was able to help students with their studies through private tutoring, leading workshops and developing academic resources. I also had the opportunity to be a Logistics Coordinator for the 2021 Ontario Engineering Competition.
I am looking forward to getting to know you throughout the semester. If you have any questions feel free to reach out at 17amm13@queensu.ca. Best of Luck this year!
Laura Lee
(4th Year Chemical Engineering with Internship)
Hi everyone, welcome to Queen’s!
My name is Laura and I will be returning for my final year of Chemical Engineering this fall. This summer, I had the opportunity to work at Procter & Gamble where I conducted loss analyses to identify ways to reduce machine stops and increase the efficiency in product lines. For this work, I often used principles I learned from ASPC100 and other engineering design courses. Overall, I found this course to be very useful for learning how to apply skills learned in class to solve real-world problems. I hope you will find this as well!
During my time at Queen’s, I’ve enjoyed working with EngSoc on the First Year Executive Committee where I helped create an Engineering Frosh Week video and a website for my year. Additionally, I was a FYPCO (First Year Project Coordinator) for the Tea Room and an outreach volunteer for WiSE (Women in Science and Engineering). Outside of school, I love trail running, playing the guitar, and going to escape rooms.
I’m excited to be a project manager for APSC100 this year and I look forward to working with you. Queen’s has a lot to offer and I hope you all have a great first year!
Luc Montpetit
(4th Year EngPhys)
Hi everyone! My name is Luc Montpetit and I am going into my fourth year of Engineering Physics. I am looking forward to meeting and, hopefully, getting a chance to work with you this year in APSC 100. I am coming back as a project manager for a second year. APSC 100 is undoubtedly the course where students grow the most. Witnessing the evolution of students towards becoming engineers last year only made me want to come back to make meaningful connections and to help you grow.
This summer, I completed an internship in Process data engineering at Rio Tinto where I was tasked to analyze process performance data and metrics. I have previously completed an internship in Engineering project management at Wajax where I worked on large project logistics and design as well as completed
smaller projects by myself. These experiences have allowed me to gain a broad range of technical and non-technical skills which, paired with my academic background, should allow me to guide you and your team throughout the year.
Outside of class and work, I love sports, especially football. I do alpine skiing and cycling while also casually going to the gym.
Again, looking forward to meeting you and WELCOME TO QUEEN’S!
Sienna Meraw
(4th Year Computer Engineering with Internship)
Sam Leader
(4th Year Mechanical Engineering with Internship)
Hi Sci’26!
My name is Sam and I am going into my fourth and final year of General Mechanical Engineering.
I recently completed an internship (QUIP) as a Manufacturing/Process Engineering Intern at Celestica. My team analyzes, implements, and refines the manufacturing process that builds electronic motherboards for customers such as Honeywell, Raytheon, Boeing, L3 Harris, and even military customers. Many of the aspects that I used on my internship directly relate to the concepts that you will all learn in APSC 100!
During my time at Queen’s, I have served as a member of Orientation Week acting as a FREC. I have also just recently joined a very exciting club called QSC (Queen’s Startup Consulting) where we will experience real-life exposure to consulting situations. The number of clubs/experiences you can gain at Queen’s is endless and would highly recommend joining a club that piques your interest! In my spare time, I enjoy cooking, running, hiking, and playing hockey/golf.
Congratulations on becoming a Queen’s Engineer! You all deserve this opportunity, and I can’t wait to be a part of this exciting journey you all are going to experience!
Welcome to Queens Sci’26!
Caira Harshaw
(4th year Civil Engineering with Internship)
Hi Sci ’26! My name is Caira and I am entering my final year of Civil Engineering. I am very excited to be your project manager and can’t wait to help you navigate your first year of engineering here at Queen’s!
This is my third year as a project manager for APSC 100 and I have also been a Complex Problem-Solving Teaching Assistant and Communications Assistant for this course. APSC 100 was my favourite course in first year as I love the team environment and working with peers!
I recently completed a 12-month internship at Acciona where I was on the design team working on large-scale transportation projects in the United States. As of September, I will have finished another 4-month co-op at Wood PLC where I am a Geotechnical-Transportation Intern where I complete geotechnical investigations for transportation projects. APSC 100 was one of the most applicable courses that translated to my work experience as it highlighted how important teamwork, collaboration, written and oral communication is. In my free time I love playing sports, cooking or spending time outdoors.
I can’t wait to meet you all and if you have any questions in the meantime feel free to reach out at caira.harshaw@queensu.ca Welcome to Queen’s!!
Aine NurAizza Nuruddin
(4th Year Electrical Engineering with internship)
Hello Sci ’26, welcome to Queen’s Engineering!!
My name is Aine NurAizza Nuruddin and I’m currently in my 4th year of Electrical Engineering. I am returning after spending 16 months as a Protection, Control and Metering Engineering Intern at Hydro One, in Toronto, Ontario.
I worked on various High Voltage (HV) and Medium Voltage (MV) transmission stations, where I was involved in the design of logic and setting schemes that protect electrical equipment such as busses, lines, transformers, circuit breakers, etc. I got an opportunity to visit several stations within the GTA and got some hands-on experience within the power sector.
Throughout my time at Queen’s, I’ve been a part of various extracurricular activities such as being a Residence Don at Jean Royce Hall (West Campus) and at Leggett Hall, where I supported a total of over 85 first year students in their transition to university. I was also a Senior Engineering Peer Mentor, involved with guiding first year engineering students towards academic success and goal setting. This past year I was a Student Ambassador at openhouse events for high school students, representing the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science. In my free time, I love to paint, spend time outdoors, or workout!
I really enjoy teamwork, collaboration and working with diverse ideas. APSC 100 was a great course that allowed me to dive into real-world engineering problems, while applying critical thinking to come up with sustainable solutions.
As a Project Manager, I am excited to support you in this design course as a mentor. If you ever want to learn more about my experiences or have any questions during your first year at Queen’s Engineering, please feel free to reach out.
Owen Hooper
Hi Sci’26! My name is Owen and I am in my 4th year of Computer Engineering, returning from a 16 month QUIP internship. I am very excited to be working with you guys during APSC-100. This course is a great opportunity to learn some new skills that will be very useful in your future at Queen’s and beyond.
I am just finishing up my internship at Rheinmetall Provectus, an autonomous robotics division of a multinational defence contractor. At Provectus I have worked on various robotics systems, including localization, path planning, device integration and drive-by-wire conversion. I have also worked for other robotics companies, doing both mobile robotics and industrial automation.
At Queen’s, I spend most of my free time working on QSET’s Mars Rover; I am returning as the team’s Chief Technical Officer (CTO) for the 2022-2023 design cycle. I spend most summers playing rugby for my local club and taking my friends on backcountry camping trips throughout Ontario, as well as doing other small robotics projects.
I can’t wait to meet you and Welcome to Queen’s!
Alexandra MacDuff
(4th Year Mechanical Engineering with Internship)
Hi Sci’26, welcome to Queen’s Engineering!
My name is Ally, and I am very excited to work with all of you! I am in my final year of Mechanical Engineering and am returning from a 16-month internship with Geotab in Oakville, Ontario. I worked in the Process Engineering Department where my main responsibilities included managing global engineering changes for electronics manufacturing, developing new product introductions, and working with many engineering teams as a collaborative effort to learn and understand how products are scoped, engineered, developed, and produced. Before Geotab, I spent a summer at a Civil Engineering Firm and another summer at a construction companying testing aggregates in a lab setting.
At queens I have been able to experience a wide range of clubs including QBiT, the Formula design team, and I am this year’s Co-Chair for CIRQUE. In my spare time, I enjoy playing golf with friends and with the Queen’s Golf Team.
I hope that I can provide insight not only in APSC Module 1 and Module 3 but also outside the classroom, whether it is related to choosing your discipline, your studies, club opportunities, etc. This course was one of my favorites throughout my 4 years at queens and I can’t wait for you to get involved. I look forward to meeting everyone, and please feel free to reach out with any questions (17amm10@queensu.ca).
Adam Strom
(4th Year Computer Engineering with Internship)
Hi Sci ‘26, welcome to Queen’s Engineering! My name is Adam and I’m entering my 4th year of Computer Engineering. I’m really excited to get to work with you on your APSC 100 projects!
This past year I interned at IBM as a mainframe compiler developer, where got to put into practice a lot of the skills I learned in APSC 100. While there I worked on a tool that automatically improves the performance of existing programs. I was able to work in a lot of different areas including testing, development, and performance improvement.
Throughout my time at Queen’s I’ve worked as a graphic designer on the EngSoc Communications Team, coordinated Electrical and Computer Engineering merchandise, and been a FREC.
I can’t wait to meet you all this year!
James Jung
(3rd Year Mechanical Engineering)
Hey Sci’26! My name is James and I am in my 3rd year of Mechanical Engineering in the Biomechanical option. I am very excited to meet and start working with you all in the fall!
I spent this past summer working at Honda as a Production Associate, assembling the right-side doors of Honda Civics! (Fun fact: this Honda plant manufactures and exports all the Honda Civics you see in North America!) In the past I’ve also worked at grocery stores, so I am very quick at generating high quality grocery lists and finding good deals!
In my spare time, I enjoy watching movies and TV shows, exploring new restaurants, cooking, playing the guitar and bongos, and a little of bit of gaming here and there. I also love walking around campus and discovering new study spots!
As I look back to my good old frosh days, I remember how much I loved APSC 100 and what a beneficial course it was for me! This course gave me hands-on experience in Engineering design and helped me develop various professional and technical skills that have been a huge help in my upper year studies. It may have been challenging at times, however looking back now, I’d say this course was my favourite and most useful first-year course. I hope this course has a similar effect on you guys and I will try my best to help achieve this!
I look forward to sharing all the things I learned over the past few years and helping you all develop your engineering skills! If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me at 19jj39@queensu.ca. See y’all in September!
Mostafa Al-Sharrad
(4th Year Electrical Engineering with internship)
Hey Sci ’26! I’m Mostafa, and I’m going into my fourth year of electrical engineering. I’m quite excited to meet you all this Fall!
To boast a bit about myself, I’m currently finishing my 16-month internship (QUIP) as an analog design engineer intern at The Six Semiconductor. In this internship I have learned so many things about the professional engineering environment, design process, and even solidified a lot of the concepts I learned in school. Analog design is basically an art; it is the attempt to create the most sophisticated technologies (think CPUs, GPUs, autonomous vehicles, and defence systems) using only a handful of devices (transistors, capacitors, resistors, and diodes). Through combining millions and billions of them, we get pretty much every technology we see around us. They are everywhere!
But with every design, there are a lot of challenges and problems to solve. There will be a lot of compromises to make, and the designer will eventually need to find a fine balance between two contradicting design necessities. To give you an example, performance vs power is one of the most persisting questions in design. If you want more performance from your design, it will need more power, but no one wants a phone whose battery will die in an hour. So, how do we balance the two?
Design process is complicated and takes time to figure out, but it is much fun and rewarding. Since you all made it to Queen’s, I’m sure you all have the grit and perseverance required to become great engineers one day!
APSC100 is one unique course that allows you to build the engineering mindset. You will be faced with open-ended questions and problems that you will tackle as a group. You will be working on fun projects with other talented students. You will get to see what it feels like to think like an engineer, and you will have taste of what engineering is really like. You will have to make decisions and compromises to get your project done. Design process is messy, unpredictable, and non-linear. You will find that out too in APSC100, and you will have to find a clear path through all design obstacles that you will encounter. I’m happy to say that I’ll be there to help you and guide you through this process, but most importantly I hope to help you see the beauty in it!
I would love to share my experiences in Queen’s and QUIP with you to prepare you to be the best engineers, so please do not hesitate to ask me any question. Can’t wait to meet you!
Brooke Sampson
(4th Year Civil Engineering with Internship)
Hey Everyone! My name is Brooke and I am returning to Queen’s for my 4th year in Civil Engineering after completing a 16 month internship with General Motors doing Environmental Engineering. I worked at the CAMI Assembly Plant in Ingersoll, ON on the Sustainable Workplaces team. Throughout my placement, I had the opportunity to gain experience as a project manager in multiple plant repair jobs as well as manage the ISO 14001 program and our Wildlife Habitat Certification application. It was a great opportunity to work with people from all sorts of educational backgrounds and to enhance my collaboration and teamwork skills. If you are interested in doing an internship, working in manufacturing or for GM, or about anything to do with the Environment, feel free to reach out to me!
Outside of academics, I work at the Tea Room (come say hi!) and you can find me spending as much time outside as possible. I love the outdoors, camping, hiking, mountain biking, travelling and plants! APSC 100 was one of my favourite classes in first year and it was so crucial in strengthening my communication, team work and problem solving abilities – all of which are extremely important in pretty much any profession you will end up in.
I am so excited to meet you all and to work together – Welcome to Queen’s!!
Chloe Brydon
(4th Year Computer Engineering with Internship)
Hey Sci ’26 – Welcome to Queen’s! My name is Chloe, and I am in my last year of Computer Engineering. APSC 100 was one of the highlights of my undergrad and the skills I learned and the friends I made have followed me into my final year. I am so excited to be one of your project managers for the year.
I am returning to Queen’s after spending 16 months at PwC Canada as a cybersecurity and financial crime associate. At PwC, I worked on a team that implemented an identity and access management solution for a major Canadian utility company to help better manage their employees and contractors. I got the opportunity to work on this project from conception to release and have learned so much about working in a team, communicating through technical writing and documentation and the overall project lifecycle process. As well, working alongside brilliant engineers all day was a very rewarding and eye-opening experience and I am hoping to share some of the things I learned from them with you!
During my time at Queen’s, I have been involved with the engineering society as an outreach volunteer and as a FREC. Outside of school and work, I like to ski, cook and spend time with family and friends.
I am so excited to meet all of you! If you have any questions or just want to chat, feel free to connect with me at 17cmb7@queensu.ca
Welcome to Queen’s!
Jared Fernyc
(4th Year Civil Engineering)
Hi Sci ’26! My Name is Jared and I am going into my fourth of year of Civil Engineering. My role as a project manager will be to support your team throughout the term and help you all develop communication, design, and technical skills. APSC 100 can be challenging but offers opportunity for growth that will benefit you through your entire degree.
Throughout my time at Queen’s, I have been involved as a student-staff member in residence, joined multiple design teams including QSDT as well as the Queen’s AutoDrive Team, and am currently working with our peer tutoring service: EngLinks. I have also developed multiple pieces of software to assist with both my coursework and summer research so if you’re interested in software development, reach out and we can chat!
I am looking forward to meeting you all this fall and seeing what the year will teach you. You can reach me at jared.fernyc@queensu.ca if you have questions.
Dawson Ethier
(4th Year Civil Engineering with Internship)
Hey Sci ’26!
My name is Dawson and I am going into my final year of Civil Engineering at Queen’s after completing a 16 month internship at EllisDon in Mississauga, Ontario. I worked on temporary structure design including falsework, formwork, platforms, and tower cranes to support construction sites across Canada. The APSC 100 course was key for my success in this internship as it gave me the initial introduction to the engineering process. The problem solving, organizational and communication skills taught in this course are crucial in a real world environment.
At Queen’s I have been involved with the Queen’s Concrete Canoe and Queen’s Super Mileage design teams. Additionally, I have been involved in many other extra curriculars including the Queen’s Civil Society, Extra Awesome and Engineers Without Borders. I recommend you get involved as much as possible to build lifelong relationships.
In my spare time I enjoy golf and soccer, as well as any other intramural sport I can get involved with. If you go to Tindal after class you’ll probably see me playing spike ball or soccer!
If you have any questions about Civil Engineering, Queen’s or just want to talk before heading to school don’t hesitate to reach out: 17dme@queensu.ca.
I can’t wait to meet you all and help you start your journey at Queen’s University!
Alexa Hadley
(4th Year Chemical Engineering)
Hi Everyone!!
My name is Alexa Hadley and I am going into my 4th year of Biochemical Engineering. I have previously worked on designing APSC courses so I am really excited to get be a project manager for both Mod 1 and Mod 3 this year. As for me I love spending my time outdoors hiking or at the climbing gym. I am looking forward to meeting you all this coming year and you should be excited because first year is a blast.
Jonah Barclay
(3rd Year Mechanical Engineering)
Hi Sci ’26, welcome to your first year of engineering at Queen’s!
My name is Jonah Barclay and I’m a third year Mechanical Engineering student. I couldn’t be more excited to start to work with some of you! I had a great time in APSC 100 and first year as a whole, and hope to help ease the transition into your first design course.
I am heavily interested in the many ways in which the fields of engineering and biology overlap. In my summers, I have had the chance to help run and orchestrate a COVID vaccination clinic, and am currently co-authoring a joint research paper centered on exercise treatment for cardiovascular patients. These jobs required skills like professional writing, effective teaming, and clear organizational abilities, each of which you will soon begin to apply in this course.
In my spare time, I like playing hockey, waterskiing, and hitting the links.
Can’t wait to meet you all soon!
Ben Laurin
(4th year Electrical Engineering with Internship)
Hey there Sci ’26! I’m Ben.
I’m starting off my last year of Electrical Engineering this year, after completing a 16 month internship as an electrical systems designer at a company called DEI Consulting Engineers.
I have been a TA in the past for ELEC299 – Mechatronics Project, and I’m very excited to be back as a TA for this course and to meet all you new future engineers! I am also a member of the Queens Fencing Foil Team and have been a part of the Engineering Society at Queens back in 1st year!
APSC100 is an excellent introduction to multidisciplinary engineering and I hope you are all just as excited as me to take on your first major project together! I very much enjoyed this course in 1st year and I’m super excited to work through it again with you!
From me and the rest of the teaching team I want to extend a warm welcome to you! Congratulations on taking the first steps of your Queens Engineering journey! Feel free to reach out if you have any questions for me!
Julia Funk
(4th year Biomechanical Engineering with Internship)
Hello Sci ‘26! Congrats and welcome to Queen’s Engineering! I am so excited to meet and work with you all this year!
My name is Julia, and I am going into my fourth year of Bio-mechanical engineering after finishing my two internships. For the first 12 months, I was at Zymeworks in Vancouver as a Software Engineer developing apps for our protein engineers. For the next three months, I was at BASF in Ludwigshafen, Germany as a Production Technology Assistant in the Battery Materials sector where I built a simulation to calculate the mass balance of a new plant.
At Queen’s I have been very involved in the Queen’s Biomedical Innovation Team (QBiT) and am excited to be one of the Co-Captains this year. I was on the varsity figure skating team during my first year and then the figure skating club in my second and third year to make time for other school involvements. In addition, I am also enrolled in the Certificate in Business (CIB). One of the most rewarding experiences for me was being a FREC. Outside of school, I love hiking, travelling, playing sports, and spending time with family and friends.
APSC 100 is one of the most applicable courses you will take during your whole degree. It will teach you the fundamentals of the engineering design process and the value of teamwork, communication, problem solving, and interdisciplinary work. I look forward to working with you as your project manager.
I encourage you to get involved as much you can and make the most out of all the amazing opportunities Queen’s has to offer. I can’t wait to get to know you all and want you to know that I am always here to help, chat, and answer any of your questions at julia.funk@queensu.ca!
Ana Duvnjak
(3rd Year Apple Math Comp)
Hey Sci’ 26 and welcome to Queen’s Eng!
My name is Ana, I’m a 3rd year Apple Math student and I’m super excited to meet you all this coming year! This summer I worked at Ernst and Young (EY) as a tax technology enablement intern. I worked alongside various tax professionals to develop spreadsheets and programs for both internal and client use.
In my spare time at school, I play intramural volleyball and frisbee as well as go on runs down by the waterfront. I’m also a director for a club called QMIND and spend the rest of my free time planning events for the upcoming year. I encourage you all to get involved in school and find things you enjoy doing around campus!
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to reach out at ana.duvnjak@queensu.ca, I’d love to chat with you all!
Lauren Wheatley
(4th Year Biochemical Engineering)
Hey Sci’26, welcome to Queen’s Engineering! My name is Lauren, and I am entering my final year of Biochemical Engineering.
I am excited to work with you all as a project manager for APSC 100 this fall! During my first year, APSC 100 was where some of my most memorable relationships started, with both fellow classmates and my own project managers. This course serves as a great opportunity to grow, and I am here to provide support in all areas.
This summer I have been working alongside investment teams at RBC Dominion Securities in Waterloo as an intern. It has been an amazing summer of growing and I am looking forward to applying what I have learned this upcoming year.
Outside of academics at Queen’s, I have been involved with Queen’s Concrete Toboggan Design Team and Queen’s Women in Financial Markets, as well with EngSoc as a FREC. I highly encourage you all to find some way to get involved in the Queen’s community, as you will make friendships that will last a lifetime. In my spare time I enjoy being active, travelling, and spending time with friends and family.
Josh Block
(4th Year Mechanical Engineering)
Hi Sci’26! My name is Josh, and I am finishing up my 4th year of Mechanical Engineering. This summer I worked at Pliteq, a manufacturing company that specializes in acoustical solutions for buildings. The APSC 100 course was my favourite experience in first year and it helped me develop many of the problem-solving and communication skills I have used during my internship and upper year courses.
As a project manager, I am really excited to work with all of you this year and watch your projects/ideas evolve. One of my other responsibilities this year will be as Captain of Queen’s Relectric, an electric vehicle design team that focuses on providing R&D opportunities and practical hands-on experiences working with EV components.
Outside of academics, I can be found playing hockey, LUG softball, or lifting at the gym. I am also a big skier and spend as much time as possible on the slopes in BC whenever I am back visiting family.
Looking forward to meeting everyone this Fall!
Sudeepta Talukdar
(3rd Year Apple Mech Engineering)
Hi Sci’26!
I am Sudeepta Talukdar, and I am in my 3rd year of Applied Math and Engineering. I had the opportunity to work as a QSuccess student mentor for international students in first-year engineering and this summer I started my role as a Senior Mentor with QSuccess!
APSC 100 helped me to develop not only my engineering skills, but also other very important soft skills. Along with an introduction to real engineering design, APSC 100 may also be a place where you find some really good friends in your first few weeks of Queen’s Engineering! As your Mod 1 project manager, I am determined to support and guide you and your team through the ‘nitty-gritties’ of this unique course!
Outside academics, some of my interests include reading, practicing Pilates and going on long walks. Interesting fact: I grew up in Bangladesh and India and therefore I am trilingual!
I am supper excited to be a project manager for APSC 100 and I am looking forward to meeting and working alongside you!
Rachel Norman
(4th year Chemical Engineering with Internship)
Hey Sci’26, welcome to Queen’s!
My name is Rachel and I am currently in my fourth year of Chemical Engineering (CHE2 – Bioengineering Option). I am coming back from a 16-month internship at Conavi Medical where I worked as a Manufacturing Engineering Intern for the production of intravascular imaging catheters. I coordinated many cross-functional projects to contribute to the development and implementation of optimal, cost-effective manufacturing processes and methods in accordance with process specifications, quality standards and business objectives.
APSC 100 is a great opportunity to work as a team on an engineering project and learn many valuable skills. I enjoyed the challenges this course presented in my first year, and look forward to supporting you through them this semester. Outside of school, I enjoy going for walks, cottaging, cooking, and spending time with my family and friends.
I can’t wait to meet you all and if you have any questions don’t hesitate to reach out at rachel.norman@queensu.ca.
Xhesika Isufi
(3rd Year Civil Engineering)
Hello Sci ’26! I hope you had a great summer and are ready to kick-start your first year!
I am Xhesika (pronounced “Jessica”), and I am entering my third year of Civil Engineering! I look forward to working with you and hope I can be a catalyst in your learning experience throughout APSC 100. I fondly look back on my experience and the profuse skills I gained and applied from this course.
This summer I had the opportunity to work as an intern at Epsilon Industries – a leading engineering company focused on HVAC modular systems and construction. Throughout my time there, I had the opportunity to immerse myself in the engineering design process. I actively participated in the proposal and submittal phases of projects, helping produce multiple SolidWorks assemblies and drawings for clients! I had the opportunity to develop multiple documents, some of which included IOM (Instruction, Operation, and Maintenance) manuals!
It has been rewarding for me to apply knowledge gained from APSC 100 to my internship this summer and it is amazing how much I have been able to draw parallels between my experience in APSC 100 and my position at Epsilon. I am enthusiastic that in the near future you also will find yourself applying the skills learned in this course to engineering field work!
I look forward to meeting you all this fall!
Jenna Hyde
(4th Year Electrical Engineering with Internship)
Hey Sci ‘26! My name is Jenna and I’m going into my 4th year of Electrical Engineering. I just finished a 16-month internship at Ontario Power Generation (OPG) in Performance Engineering. At OPG I was responsible for monitoring/maintaining the health and performance of various electrical and mechanical systems at the Darlington nuclear plant. I got to work on several projects where I learned a lot about working in teams and the engineering design process.
Throughout my time at Queen’s I’ve been involved with Connections Engineering Outreach, EngLinks, Walkhome, Queen’s Space Conference, and Orientation Week as a FREC. Outside of school I spend my time playing volleyball, going on walks/hikes, and hanging out with friends and family.
Congrats on making it to Queen’s! Can’t wait to meet and work with all of you this fall!
Pasha Shavelev
(4th Year Engineering Physics with Internship)
Hi Sci 26’,
My name is Pasha, and I am an incoming fourth year engineering Physics student. I have just come back from a 16-month internship at AMD working on the package design team. Basically, if you have ever built your own computer and installed your own CPU with a bunch of pins on the back of it, you have touched a computer part my team fully designed. My specific role was working on test chips and server chips that are used by the biggest companies in the world. I was even given the opportunity to work on a chip that is going to be used for the world fastest supercomputer.
APSC 100 is a fantastic course teaching you everything that you need to know that isn’t taught by formulas. It teaches you everything that you need to succeed for your future engineering jobs and careers. I am looking forward in helping you succeed with this course and help the start of your Queens engineering journey.
Outside of the classroom, you can find me at the outdoor hockey rinks and at the gym practicing Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. It’s a new hobby that I started 6 months ago, and I hope to continue it while going through my 4th year.
