Spotlight Stories
Mar 05, 2026
Making His Research Matter: From Lab to Practical Applications
Francesco Pessia, PhD’27, electrical engineering, develops machine learning systems for autonomous antenna calibration at the Mentis Lab in collaboration with the Institute of Intelligent Networked Systems. After graduation, he plans to transform his research into practical applications—either through industry or by launching his own startup in wireless communications technology.
Mar 04, 2026
Improving Lives by Exploring Urban Mobility and Transportation
Nail Bashan, PhD’26, civil and environmental engineering, graduates this March ready to bring his transportation research expertise to industry, where he aims to translate complex data science into practical solutions that improve how people move through their communities.
Feb 26, 2026
Shalini Agrawal’s Journey in Robotics from “Scratch”
Shalini Agrawal, MS’26, robotics, works as a robotics software engineer co-op at Orpheus Ocean, where she’s applying the state estimation and sensor integration skills she developed at Northeastern’s Field Robotics Lab. After graduation, she plans to bring her hands-on experience to industry, advancing autonomous robotics systems at scale.
Feb 24, 2026
Building Reliable Systems Through Experience
Shreya Wanisha, MS’26, software engineering systems, leveraged Northeastern’s co-op program to gain hands-on experience in large-scale backend development at Labcorp, where she worked on systems processing over 70 million healthcare records daily—experience that’s shaping her path toward cloud computing and distributed systems engineering.
Feb 24, 2026
Building from Scratch: A PhD Journey in Bio-inspired Robotics
Bibek Gupta, PhD ’27, computer engineering, is developing morphing-wing robots at the Silicon Synapse Lab. From building bat-inspired systems from scratch, he’s mastered the modeling, control, and deployment skills needed to create robots that solve real-world problems—expertise he’ll bring to industry after graduation.
Feb 19, 2026
Becoming Intentional at Dennis Lab with Warisha Tahir
Warisha Tahir, PhD’27, chemical engineering, currently works at Dennis Lab under Professor Alison Dennis. With a focus on positive human impact, Tahir will use her skills and experience to develop new innovations in the public health realm.
Feb 12, 2026
Engineering Faster Drug Delivery: A PhD Journey in Fluid Mechanics
Langqi Xing, PhD’28, mechanical and industrial engineering, currently works in the Multiphase Transport Research lab as a graduate researcher. Drawing on his interdisciplinary background and experiences at Northeastern, Xing plans to pursue an industrial role advancing fluid mechanics applications in medicine.
Feb 09, 2026
New and Knowledgeable Experiences Through LEADERs
Elifnur Sunger, MS’25, PhD ’26, electrical engineering, reflects on her internship at Sanofi-blending machine learning and biology-as well as crucial lessons from the LEADERs Program.