Student Profiles

Estera Bogdan

Most people will not have a chance to conduct research at the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Computer System Engineering major Estera Bogdan recently pursued a summer internship at NASA with the NASA Science and Technology Institute (NSTI). Her first steps to acquiring advanced education in the sciences began in 2002 after she graduated from Rio American High School in Sacramento, CA. From there she starts her engineering studies in CA before transferring to SCI’s computer science program. She said, “The thing I most enjoy about ASU’s program is the people. Everyone is very passionate about what they are doing and they have great goals. This pushes me to do better and become an excellent engineer.”

Summer internships provide students with a chance to improve their engineering abilities while gaining work experience. Bogdan worked as infrastructure IT support personnel alongside NASA engineers and other interns. Her main responsibilities were developing a web-based application for the on-site environmental services. She also provided IT support in different departments for numerous machines that crashed or performed improperly. Over the course of the summer, she earned two completion awards, which recognized her exemplary work performance. Bogdan said, “I absolutely enjoyed my work, but in between projects I was given the chance to attend many workshops that presented NASA's past and future projects. Also, engineers and doctors presented many projects that they were currently working on and the research that they were doing.” She added, “These workshops helped me realize the importance of NASA's work and also the importance in exploring Mars and the Moon.”

Engineering is a field in desperate need of diversity in terms of women and minorities. Bogdan explained, “In the computer engineering field there aren't very many women and I am proud to be part of this community because I have a lot to bring to the plate. I am willing to input anything to improve technology and advance for the future.” She recognizes the importance of her presence in the field and at NASA. Bogdan said, “I was very honored to be chosen to participate in this internship, so I would recommend this internship to anyone. Even if they are not interested about space exploration, NASA offers a lot of different fields where students could get involved.” She added, “The work that is done by a student is acknowledged and taken serious. NASA needs interns and so they respect them and give them many opportunities to grow.”

Bogdan has two main goals to complete in her remaining time at ASU. She said, “One of the goals that I have for the future is to become a better student and give back to the community. Going to school and getting an education should be fun and rewarding, so I am planning on getting an internship with a local engineering firm and improve my skills and educational goals.” Recently she accepted an internship this fall at Sandhills Publishing, a publishing company that makes magazines like auto mart, where she works in the technology department. She said, “So far I have been working with Excel, Macro and VBA. The work is very challenging and the task is to learn how to acquire the solution, not to just do it and forget about it. It is very hard but once a training exercise is finished it is very rewarding.” As graduation nears, Bogdan is also considering her post-graduation plans. She elaborated, “I would like to go back to NASA and be part of space exploration. There are so many questions in my mind about space and the solar system that makes me hungry for information.”