Babcock-Chi on the soccer field.
Name: Jade Babcock-Chi
Hometown: Del Mar, CA
Major: BS in Aerospace Engineering, Minor in Computer Science
Year: Senior
Mentor/Lab: Dennis Akos
I grew up in Del Mar, California, which is a city in north San Diego. From a young age I have always been very interested in science and math, and always looked forward to those classes the most.
Math came the easiest, and from 5th grade on I was always a year or two ahead. I finished high school having completed Calc I-III and Linear Algebra as well as having taken two to three years of computer science (CS) classes. For the longest time I thought I was going to do Bioengineering, or something related to biology because I loved it and didn’t enjoy computer science or physics as much at the time.
I am a D1 Women’s Soccer player on scholarship for CU Boulder, but when I committed to this school for soccer, I knew that my academics actually came first.
CU Boulder has a strong bioengineering program, but my mom works in this field, so it inspired me to branch out and consider other majors. That led me to seriously consider the aerospace engineering program.
When I committed here for soccer, I had just finished my sophomore year of high school, but I was already confident that doing aerospace at CU Boulder was going to be a good fit based on my high school background and academic interests.
My coaches still don’t really understand what it’s like to be the only engineering major on the team, let alone aerospace engineering, but I am more than grateful they are able to accommodate me.
Babcock-Chi on the ski slopes.
Being able to play D1 soccer as well as get an amazing education is more than I could have hoped for.
I also love Boulder because I can be very active, and I usually go skiing most weekends in the winter and hike all the time in the summer and fall all around Colorado. The location of Boulder and the atmosphere here was something that definitely drew me in.
What’s made this experience extra special is being able to work with such great classmates and professors in and out of the classroom. I have been doing undergraduate research with Dr. Dennis Akos in the Radio Frequency & Satellite Navigation Laboratory for over a year now and he has helped me find what I am interested in as well as give me amazing opportunities outside of class.
I am going into my Senior (4th) year and planning to begin my MS this fall through the Bachelor’s Accelerated Master’s program (BAM).
Being able to get a BS in Aerospace Engineering, a minor in CS, and an MS in Aerospace Engineering all within five years of coming to CU Boulder is an amazing opportunity and I know it will prepare me for success, whether I go into industry or pursue a PhD.