Danielle Peterson is sophomore here at the University of Iowa. Originally from Peoria, Illinois, this stunningly gorgeous twenty-year-old is studying biomedical engineering, Recently, she accepted an internship for this spring and summer and she could not be any more excited.
Where is your internship and what do you do?
Peterson: I am doing what is called a co-op, where I take the semester off of school and work full time for a company as a mechanical design engineer through August. So it’s an eight month time frame where I get to experience the work that I could possibly be doing as an engineer when I graduate. Engineering internships are unique to other internships in that it is paid (and paid very well), and you are hired to fill the role of an actual engineer. I work at a company called CIVCO Medical Solutions, and in my particular role I design needle guides for imaging instruments like ultrasounds that would be used in procedures with really long needles (usually cancer-related like bone marrow transplants).
What are your plans for the future?
Peterson: My dream job is working for a company that designs prosthetics. I truly believe that we have the capability to design a fully-functional arm for someone that might have lost theirs for example; it’s just a matter of figuring it out. With all of the technology in the world we live in, it’s just not fair that someone that becomes paralyzed is constrained to a wheelchair for the rest of their life. If I can design a pair of functional legs for them, I will certainly try.
When you’re not working or studying, what do you like to do?
Peterson: I have met some of the best people in the world here at Iowa, and I love them to death. So they’re top of the list when it comes to activities outside of school. I loved being a part of the homecoming exec board in the fall, too. Taco Tuesday, can’t forget that. I ski, I go boating. I just like to do active stuff I guess. AND I LOVE TO TRAVEL.
From beauty to brains, Danielle has it all! It’s no wonder she is this week’s University of Iowa Campus Celebrity. Keep up the good work, Danielle!