Student Profile: Kali Hamilton (Leap)

#TerrierTuesdays: To peers in her engineering courses, Kali Hamilton (ENG) appears to be just another undergrad. The difference? Kali already holds a B.A. in political science from @uofpenn. The California native came to BU to join one of the only programs of its kind in the nation: LEAP. LEAP offers an accelerated curriculum to students with non-traditional backgrounds to transition into BU’s Masters of Engineering program. These students are brought up to speed on engineering basics that most traditional Masters candidates get in their undergrad coursework. Kali, who began the program in September, will matriculate into BU’s Master’s of mechanical engineering program next spring, where she will focus on robotics. Kali’s journey to engineering is both unconventional & serendipitous. She recalls graduating in 2014 with no clear idea of what she wanted to do next. After working as a criminal defense legal intern, an academic research intern and a Jimmy John’s bike delivery driver, she found a permanent position at Philabundance, a hunger relief organization in Philadelphia. It was there she realized there were challenges her organization faced that could be solved by someone with engineering skills. Her “aha” moment came in the warehouse banana room, a temperature-controlled space optimized to keep bananas fresh. Kali recognized that when they had an abundance of other food items, but no bananas, that space was wasted. This spurred her to seek an automated solution. Ultimately, these are the types of problems she hopes to fix, with the goal of using her skills to consult for social justice organizations & nonprofits. She’s already at work, dedicating her free time to making composting easier for individual homeowners & apartment dwellers. Kali’s project aims to use heat generated from food waste to offset gas heating bills, incentivizing people to be more sustainable. Her message to fellow Terriers? “It’s hard to remember that everyone is unique & your path isn’t necessarily linear. My experiences have all been completely different, but they’ve each led me to the next. If what you’re doing doesn’t feel right in your gut, it’s never too late to start again.”

A post shared by Boston University (@bostonu) on Mar 27, 2018 at 9:10am PDT

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