By Niki Jennings, MSE Communications Specialist
Tiernan Baucom is a fourth-year undergraduate senior majoring in materials science and engineering. A fan of math and puzzles, and initially a biochemistry major with her sights set on medicine, Tiernan learned about MSE by word-of-mouth: she was helping friends with their engineering homework, and at the urging of an advisor, it was suggested that she switch to engineering. She met with engineering advisors and learned about CBE and MSE by researching the department websites. “I decided after my first semester that I might enjoy engineering more, and after my freshman year, I officially CODA’ed into MSE,” says Tiernan. “I was interested in MSE particularly due to the broad options it provides. I was still interested in exploring the health industry, but also energy and even automotive as well. I liked that MSE would give me the opportunity to apply my education to any field I wanted and liked learning more about the structure-property relationships that MSE introduces you to.”
After her spring 2022 graduation, Tiernan will begin graduate work on a Materials Science and Engineering Ph.D. at the University of Michigan.
In 2021, Tiernan was a Mickey Leland Energy Fellow at the National Energy Technology Laboratory, where she worked on computational research involving metal-organic frameworks and their CO2 adsorption capabilities. The takeaway of the fellowship confirmed Tiernan wants to work in the energy industry also she really likes computational work. This discovery also came from working in Dr. Yingling’s lab in the summer of 2020. That internship gave her a closer look at the industry perspective of what that work looks like, and Tiernan learned she wants to work in a national lab because she likes the opportunities, what they focus on, and what they offer.
Tiernan has thoroughly enjoyed her time in MSE, largely because of the small size of the department. “I felt like I was able to meet almost all of my classmates because of how many classes we all shared together,” says Tiernan. “I also felt like I could interact more with my professors than I would have been able to in larger classes, something I definitely appreciated during online courses. Some of my favorite classes in MSE have been Thermo with Dr. Irving and Electrical, Optical, and Magnetic Properties with Dr. So.” She thinks that the coolest thing about the department is that MSE is the basis of everything in the world around us, both natural and manufactured. “MSE is able to explain the phenomena we see every day down to the atomic level and is able to manipulate these properties through engineering which is something I find very cool,” says Tiernan.
On top of her schoolwork, Tiernan has served as an NC State Student Ambassador in the MSE department since fall 2020. She has been a teacher’s assistant for multiple semesters, and during her sophomore year, she was active in Engineering Without Borders, serving on volunteer and outreach teams.
Outside of MSE, Tiernan is active in the Grand Challenge Scholars holding cabinet positions since the fall of 2019 including Communications Chair, Vice President, and President. Tiernan has also been active in the University Scholars Program since spring 2019.
Tiernan’s favorite NC State memories include all of the friends she has made at NC State and the experiences they have been able to share: from countless basketball and football games to concerts and break trips and everything in between. For fun, Tiernan can be found watching sports games, going to concerts, and hiking.
If you would like to learn more about Tiernan, please contact MSE Communications to be connected.