Re: tell us about your job
What do you do? I'm a grad student in chemical engineering at Arizona State. My research focuses on higher order finite elements and Lagrangian particle tracking in parallel for modeling particle deposition in the upper airways of the lung. I also do a bit of work with preconditioners and algebraic multigrid. Basically, I'm an applied mathematician.
Do you like it? Yes
What makes you in particular well-suited or poorly-suited for your work? I'm good at math.
What kind of people do best in your work? Highly dedicated and technical. I consult with some of the smartest people in this country regularly.
What qualifications are necessary for people considering work in the same field as you? A BS in math, physics, chemical engineering, or mechanical engineering are most common, but I guess any engineering would do.
What is a typical day like? Wake up, wander over to my lab on campus at some point, spend 6-8 hours there coding various simulations and running them. Read papers and occasionally the internet while said simulations are running.
What kind of problems do you encounter? Code stability and cluster maintenance.
What are the biggest (most common) sources of frustration and elation? Mostly the answer to the previous question, for frustration. Elation comes from getting my research published.
How much do you make? My stipend is $20k/year plus tuition and health insurance. I have an internship at Sandia National Laboratory this summer that pays a bit more.
How much can one expect to make in your position? Post-docs make around $50k/year, industry professionals and national lab employees make between $60-200k/year, professors $90-150k/year (though highly accomplished ones make as much as $450k/year).
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