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Developing a podcast project to supplement chemical & biological engineering elective courses

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Conference

2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Location

Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Publication Date

June 22, 2025

Start Date

June 22, 2025

End Date

August 15, 2025

Conference Session

WiP: Interdisciplinary Connections

Tagged Division

Chemical Engineering Division (ChED)

Page Count

7

Permanent URL

https://peer.asee.org/56246

Paper Authors

biography

Justin Vento Villanova University

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Justin Vento graduated with a chemical engineering degree from Manhattan College and became a process engineer in the petrochemical industry. After a few years, he pursued his PhD in chemical and biological engineering from NC State, where he studied and developed tools for microorganisms within the human gut microbiome. He then worked for a few years as a scientist at a synthetic biology company Ginkgo Bioworks in Boston, MA. He is currently a Visiting Assistant Teaching Professor at Villanova University. Justin is passionate about teaching the fundamentals of chemical engineering in an engaging manner while also developing new courses that introduce students to the evolving biotechnology industry.

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Abstract

Chemical engineering students are faced with many different fields they could enter upon graduation, and demanding curriculums make career development opportunities scarce. While core chemical engineering courses are typically set in their structure, elective courses offer an opportunity to encourage students to ponder their passions and develop purpose within their education. Furthermore, growing industries such as biotechnology offer new opportunities to graduates, although students are often unaware of such career paths. To address these gaps, we have developed a "podcast series project" as part of a new elective chemical engineering course in synthetic biology where we interview professionals during class who utilize synthetic biology in different industries or in academia. The project has three learning objectives: to introduce students to career paths for chemical engineers within synthetic biology, to showcase how synthetic biology can be used to solve world problems, and to highlight the interdisciplinary nature of synthetic biology. Students assembled a podcast project report throughout the semester that included asking questions to the speakers, reflecting on a set of speakers, and following up on one speaker area for new learnings. Introducing this type of organized guest speaker series in chemical engineering elective courses should bolster career development by offering students time to reflect on their own career path and by connecting them with professionals who bring diverse perspectives on evolving career paths available for chemical engineering graduates across emerging industries.

Vento, J. (2025, June), Developing a podcast project to supplement chemical & biological engineering elective courses Paper presented at 2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition , Montreal, Quebec, Canada . https://peer.asee.org/56246

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