This is a guest blog entry about Selin Demircan written by Satwika Vemuri.
I was introduced to Selin through my friend Jackie since they are both Environmental Engineering (ENE) majors. Our friend groups intersect a lot and we’ve spent time together before, but I connected with her on a deeper level when I chatted with her for this blog post. Here’s a little more about her!
Selin is an Environmental Engineering Major and a Cinematic Arts minor who is also part of the American Society of Civil Engineers where she is part of the Environmental Design Team, Engineers Without Borders where she is part of the Guatemala Design Team, and executive board for Flavors at USC. She is also part of undergraduate research with USC’s McCurry lab where she works on wastewater treatment for water reuse in California.
Originally from Turkey, Selin was first inspired to consider environmental science because of her interest in habitat restoration, specifically in helping plants and animals. Though she had thought about environmental science for a while, she discovered ENE when she looked more into the engineering applications of her interests. After coming to USC, she learned more about the broader field of ENE and discovered that she was interested not just in habitat restoration but in a wide range of environmental concerns that involved ENE.
After experiencing ENE’s small cohort, Selin also came to love the close relationships she could foster with her professors and peers. These connections were something she pursued not just in her major, but outside of her major as well through her cinematic arts minor and her involvement with Flavors at USC.
She spoke about how she loved getting to know a wide range of people through this additional coursework as well as her club involvement. Specifically with Flavors, she shared how she loved the community of people within this club that all bonded over a common love for food!
Selin sees herself potentially specializing further in ENE through a master’s degree or getting her PhD. She really enjoys research with her current lab and wants to see how else she can apply her ENE knowledge in a research setting. For now, you can find her working hard at McCurry lab, at ASCE’s upcoming design competition or celebrating culture at Flavors. She encourages prospective students to truly consider ENE, especially if they have a passion for sustainability and the environment!
