Meet the Clark Scholars

Estelle Burkhardt

Point Arena, CA

Bioengineering

Hobbies

Some of my miscellaneous hobbies include, sketching, swimming, chess, kicking back with friends, reading fiction, hiking, listening to music and exploring Philadelphia.

Future Goals

I plan on receiving a BSE in Bioengineering and eventually doing service work for Doctors Without Borders, traveling the world offering humanitarian and medical aid.

James Ciardullo

Philadelphia, PA

Computer Science

Hobbies

Playing Video Games, Playing Guitar, Coding, Listening to Music, Watching Youtube Videos.

Future Goals

I wanted to be a mechanical engineer because I was fascinated with how mechanisms worked and I love robotics and coding. I don’t really have any future career plans yet but at some point I’d like to work for Google, Microsoft, and/or Boston Dynamics. I’m excited to do my undergraduate research at Penn in the future!

Francesca Cimino

New City, New York

Bioengineering

Hobbies

I thoroughly enjoy traveling, spending time with my family and friends and listening to music. I also try to volunteer whenever I can.

Future Goals

My love of math and science, along with my desire to make an impact on people’s lives, leads me to pursue bioengineering. I know that my Penn education, as well as all the resources available to me, will allow me to achieve my career goals and become a successful and productive individual.

Natasha Dilamani

Great Neck, NY

Mechanical Engineering

Hobbies

My hobbies include watching movies and listening to music. I am also an active person, so I enjoy playing basketball, snowboarding, throwing around a frisbee, and exercising.

Future Goals

I don’t know exactly what career I want, but I know that I want it to involve designing products and building them. I selected mechanical engineering as my major because I think it’s awesome that it combines creativity, problem solving, and mechanics into one discipline. I just think it’s super cool to be able to design a product and bring it to life!

Quincy Hendricks

Carmel, CA

Bioengineering

Hobbies

I enjoy ultimate frisbee. However, when I have time off from school, I like to simply relax.

Future Goals

I plan to work on brain-computer interfaces. I have decided to do bioengineering with a concentration in neuroengineering and a minor in computational neuroscience. Eventually, I hope to conduct research into simulating the mind on a computer.

Rozina Hidaru

Seattle, WA

Computer Science

Hobbies

I ran track and cross-country in high school, and although I'm not part of teams here at Penn, I still enjoy going on runs to exercise. In my free time I also enjoy reading novels and watching TV.

Future Goals

I decided I wanted to pursue computer science after taking a class at my high school and doing an internship through Girls Who Code at the Amazon campus in Seattle. I realized that I enjoyed coding and I could use this skill to go into virtually any field that interested me. In our technologically advancing world, I want to be able to keep up with these advances, and possibly contribute to them. I’m excited to be at Penn because of the amazing computer science program, and I’m glad I also have the opportunity to explore other interests as well.

Fahmida Lubna

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

Hobbies

I really enjoy painting and gardening. Depending on the weather, I would spend time outside gardening or stay indoors and work on an art piece.

Future Goals

I am intrigued by the idea of using chemical properties to manipulate the biological functions. I also like the fact that we can apply those properties not only to existing biological systems but also engineer new devices for our advancement. That is why I hope to pursue research in chemical and biomolecular engineering.

Ryan Martinez

Muncie, Indiana

Computer Science

Hobbies

In my free time, I enjoy skateboarding, playing volleyball and playing ping pong. I am on the intramural volleyball team and in the ping pong club.

Future Goals

After graduating from Penn, I hope to jump right into industry, working in some capacity with artificial intelligence, language processing or both. I chose to study Computer Science because I think it provides a unique toolset for solving challenging, real-world problems.

Brandon Reid

New Milford, CT

Computer Engineering

Hobbies

Music Production, Basketball, Ultimate Frisbee, Weightlifting, Piano, Cello, Singing, Video Games

Future Goals

I decided to pursue Penn engineering because not only do you learn, but you also learn how to apply that knowledge to real world situations. In the future I hope to develop my own robotics company within a certain niche (home improvement, health, or warfare). I hope with the knowledge I gain and the connections I make, I am able to make my dream a reality.

Bahda Shin

San Jose, CA

Computer Science

Hobbies

My hobbies include sports such as basketball and volleyball. I also enjoy playing instruments such as the piano and trumpet. On my days off, I do enjoy outdoor activities such as hiking.

Future Goals

I would love to pursue studies in computer science simply because I enjoy programming, learning and implementing algorithms. In addition, I am very excited to learn and expand upon the current trends and developments in the field and understand its implications concerning general technology. I’m eager to narrow my focus and discover which particular track I should head in upon interacting with excellent professors, faculty, and peers.