Senior Honors Student Lands Prestigious Research Experience

Senior Honors Student Lands Prestigious Research Experience

Trevor Blodgett countered daunting odds for him to land a prestigious Research Experiences for Undergraduate (REU) opportunity with his own dogged determination.

A REU supports active participation in science, engineering and education research by undergraduate students. They typically only have acceptance rates of 5%.

So, the senior honors student, a dual major in astrophysics and applied mathematics, applied to more than 20 highly competitive REU programs in hopes of getting accepted into just one.

Blodgett's efforts paid off, he learned, on his way to class. He had been accepted into the University of Minnesota's REU program under Michael Coughlin, an assistant professor in the school's Department of Physics.

"I got the email of my acceptance after I had almost given up and become jaded with the process," Blodgett said. "I was running late to class when I got the email, and I spent another five minutes composing myself before I walked into that class."

And for 10 weeks last summer, Blodgett independently conducted paid research alongside nine other students.

"Throughout the summer I worked with my group on developing the group's gravitational wave detection software," Blodgett said. "The culmination of this was a presentation to the department and a poster presentation with all Minnesota REU students."

Helping him to earn his REU was Eli Visbal, an assistant professor of astronomy at in UToledo's College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, who looked over his application materials and gave him feedback during the process.

"Trevor has been working in my theoretical astrophysics group since the beginning of his sophomore year at UToledo," Visbal said. "Given Trevor's enthusiasm for astrophysics research and his ability to independently learn new and complex topics, I expect his continued success in research both at UToledo and beyond."

An honors student ambassador at the Jesup Scott Honors College, serving as a mentor and leader for other honors students, Blodgett said he chose his academic pursuits based on rigorous challenge and intellectual appeal.

"I wanted to choose a major that would challenge me and involve a lot of problem solving," he said. "That, combined with my interest in studying the universe, led me to choose physics with a concentration in astrophysics."

Blodgett said he plans to pursue astrophysics in graduate school, with the hope of forging a career in research.

"I don't know in seven years when grad school is over what exactly I'll be doing," he said. "I do know I want to use the problem-solving skills I develop to research something, whether it be the early universe or AI in industry."

Blodgett added that he is proud of the work he accomplished during his summer research experience.

"This work was all self-paced and I definitely learned how to keep a good pace on my own," he said. "It was truly up to me how much I accomplished."

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