Chicago Students Explore Industrial Engineering During Campus Visit

A group of 20 students from the Chicago Math and Science Academy spent November 13 on campus as guests of Northwestern Engineering, the Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences, and the student chapter of the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers (IISE).

Pantira Ketkaew, a third-year industrial engineering student, made sure the young visitors came away from their experience knowing much more about industrial engineering.

“It is really important to show them what industrial engineering is, what the applications are, its professional pathways, and to stress to them it’s an option they can consider once they’re in college,” said Ketkaew, who serves as vice president of the IISE chapter. “The field has evolved a lot over the past 10 years.”

To show that evolution, Ketkaew and the IEMS department programmed a series of presentations and demonstrations about the field. Among them, Walter P. Murphy Professor of Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences David Morton shared his research about pandemic decision support, while Jane S. and William J. White Professor of Behavioral Sciences in Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences Noshir Contractor presented on how network science is being used to assemble teams traveling to space.

Other activities included observations of Morton’s course IEMS 313: Foundations of Optimization, and classes taught by Charles Deering McCormick Distinguished Associate Professor of Instruction Ilya Mikhelson (COMP_ENG 203: Intro to Computer Eng.) and assistant professor of instruction Jeremy Keys (GEN_ENG 205-3: Engineering Analysis 3). During lunch, the students met with Jill Wilson, assistant chair of IEMS; Tara Saxena, president of Northwestern’s chapter of the Society of Women Engineers; Matias Ketema and Oriname Adurodija, executive board members of Northwestern’s National Society of Black Engineers chapter; and executive board members of Northwestern’s IISE chapter: Ketkaew, Evrim Agca, Janice Chao, Lucy Gallun, Ana Kim, and Mark Ruiz.

“Industrial engineering is an ideal major for students with strong interest in mathematics and applying it to real-world problems, but many students discover IE for the first time after they arrive on campus to pursue a different major,” Wilson said. “Hearing accomplished student leaders like Pantira, Lucy, and Mark talk about their love of IE and their career plans makes IE accessible to these equally promising students.  We look forward to hosting more outreach events.” 

Once lunch ended, the group walked to Norris University Center for an admissions information session.

“As we were driving in today, a couple of the kids said, ‘Hey, we just arrived at Hogwarts.’ It's a beautiful campus. The students love the campus,” said Jack Dehring, a math teacher and department head at the Chicago Math and Science Academy who chaperoned the visit. “We're an urban school on the north side of Chicago. Almost all our kids are considered low income. We have a lot of first-generation students. In the last several years, we've sent one-to-three students to Northwestern to do their undergraduate work. This is a school they know they have access to, that they know is attainable for them.

“Being able to see this and understand that they have the potential to be at a place of this caliber really opens their eyes to the possibilities and helps them to see there's so much out there for them. This is one of those wonderful places.”

High school senior Precious Adedokun was one of the 20 students on the trip. Visiting Northwestern was an eye-opening experience for her as she learned more about industrial engineering — a field she hadn’t encountered before. A QuestBridge finalist, she’s hoping to match with Northwestern.

A highlight for Adedokun was Contractor’s presentation, which delved into the blend of mechanical and psychological challenges in space exploration. That segment was part of an informative day for Adedokun, who lives in Chicago’s Rogers Park neighborhood.

She said she’ll remember hearing about all the different aspects of engineering.

“It can really branch out into anything,” she said.