I want to welcome you to the MEGSA web page! MEGSA, the Mechanical Engineering Graduate Student Association, was established in spring 2002 as a forum for graduate students in Mechanical Engineering to share their mutual academic experiences as ME students and common and extraordinary talents and hobbies outside of the academic sphere.
Why, you ask, do I address you as “Fellow Students?” I have on my wall above my desk a small piece of paper sent to me by my father, also a University Professor. The paper reads simply: The truly educated never graduate. I believe that phrase embodies the spirit of graduate education in the Mechanical Engineering Department.
When I became the ME Graduate Program Director, I noticed that, while there was much camaraderie among the ME graduate students, there was no formal or organized focus for our activities. I wanted all ME students to feel part of a larger family here at UMBC, and to feel that they had the support and friendship of all the other graduate students in the Department. I also believed that the motivation to create an ME graduate student organization should come from the students, rather than myself. So, I asked some of our more “outgoing” students to create what is now
The first milestone was reached in spring 2002, when MEGSA became a recognized organization at UMBC. Now that we have MEGSA, how can we (and I include both faculty and graduate students) use MEGSA to improve the quality of both academic and non-academic life in the Mechanical Engineering Department? I have some ideas to share with you.
First, MEGSA should be a place where all ME students feel welcome, and feel eager to participate in. MEGSA is a place for friendship. MEGSA is also a forum where graduate students can help both the Department and other graduate students.
MEGSA can help the Department improve its overall relationship with graduate students. MEGSA can act as the voice for graduate students to tell the ME Department what it does both well and not so well. I welcome all comments from graduate students that will help us improve our graduate programs.
MEGSA is for and of the ME graduate students. I would like to see MEGSA as the central organization to help all graduate students with their graduate careers, and beyond. As MEGSA grows, its programs and events are limited only by the imaginations and motivations of the student members.
To close, MEGSA is a student run organization, and I encourage all ME graduate students to actively participate in MEGSA meetings and events. Through MEGSA, you will find like minded ME graduate students who face the same challenges, milestones, and concerns as do you. We, the faculty, know that an ME graduate degree is not given freely, that it is hard won by hard work and diligence on your part. We also know that you are very capable of achieving your goal of an ME graduate degree. I want you to consider MEGSA as a supportive and critical part of your journey toward that goal.
Sincerely,
Dr. Tim Topoleski
Professor and Graduate Program Director
MEGSA Faculty Advisor
Home | Contact Us | Feedback
Directions