This is a guest blog entry written by Savannah Stotts.
Hello, my name is Savannah Stotts and I am a sophomore studying chemical engineering. I was born and raised in the San Fernando Valley for most of my life, but lived in Salt Lake City, Utah and Cambridge, Massachusetts as well! Some of my interests include rock climbing, baking, hiking, and going to the beach!
Growing up, I always had a stark interest academics, but chemistry, math, writing, and history always stood out. My Abuelo and I would spend a lot of time watching documentaries and discussing various subjects.
When I was 8, my mother met my stepfather who had studied electrical engineering. He explained it was someone who invented things and solved problems. It sounded perfect for me! I was obsessed and immediately declared that I wanted to be an engineer. But, from the age of 8-17 things changed. I circled from chemical engineer, to lawyer, to master chef, to cosmetic business owner, to journalist, to chemist, and then to chemical engineer.
In this time, when I was 13, I had the privilege to go on a two week school trip through Europe. We went through Spain, the South of France, and down Italy until we hit the Amalfi Coast. This trip opened my eyes and changed the trajectory of my life. I never realized how much of the world there was to see, and I decided I wanted to see as much of it as I could. When I was 15, I bought a large map and pinned every location in the world I wanted to go to, spanning across all 7 continents. One of my main goals in college was to study abroad for a year in a place that I knew I could travel on the weekends.
I ended up choosing chemical engineering because I always had a love for chemistry from my first science project testing the pH of candy, to tutoring chemistry students in high school. I knew I wanted to pursue something involving chemistry, but wanted to go down a track geared towards application and industry, rather than academia.
One of the reasons I chose USC was due to the variety of engineering electives that regarded environmentalism and material science. I also loved the emphasis on Engineering+. After co-founding an Environmental Cleanup Club in high school, I came to be passionate about sustainability and aiding climate change. It led me to my favorite class I have taken at USC which was Climate Change: History, Science, and Solutions. As an chemical engineer, understanding how CO2 emissions and pollution have damaged the planet inspired me to hopefully go down a more sustainable route in my future career and hopefully contribute something that could help the planet one day. Starting my journey at USC, I also joined AIChE as a freshman representative, and now a marketing chair!
For the academic 2024-2025 year I have gotten the opportunity to study abroad in London at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL). I have gotten to explore Europe and the UK on the weekends and continue my engineering studies throughout the week. Some of the places I have visited have been Cambridge, Switzerland, Portugal, the Czech Republic, and the Netherlands! In addition, I have gotten to take classes that embrace my interests in sustainability and history while being exposed to different perspectives on world issues.
Overall, I feel like I am living what I have dreamt of for years: the opportunity to have an international experience and to study at such a great institution. I have been very fortunate for the opportunities I have had, and hope that when I get back to USC I can explore a new interest in entrepreneurship, be more involved in environmentalism, continue to fulfill my wanderlust, and to seek out new opportunities that may come my way when I arrive at home.
