Meet Bio-Rad Scholarship Recipient Hillary Khuu!
February 9, 2023
With our 2023 Scholarship Program launching in the SF Bay Area, we reached out to one of last year’s scholarship recipients to learn about her journey since receiving her Bio-Rad Scholarship. Hillary Khuu is currently pursuing a degree in mechanical engineering at UC Berkeley and says her interests in science and engineering began at a young age.
“My dad’s a mechanic,” says Hillary, “So I would always see him build stuff and fix cars – and I used to want to be an inventor growing up. In high school, I joined MESA, which is a math, engineering, and science achievement club. We did some projects with a prosthetic arm and others related to civil engineering that I really enjoyed.”
Since starting at UC Berkeley last Fall, Hillary has continued to engage with a variety of projects both inside and outside of the classroom. “Throughout my first semester, I performed weekly green chemistry experiments, solved endless pages of integrals and series, and much more,” she says.
“I also explored seven libraries and engaged in multiple organizations, including Society of Women Engineers, NavCal, and Bridges Multicultural Resource Center. I even had the opportunity to meet UC Berkeley Chancellor Carol Christ during a Regents’ and Chancellor’s Scholars event!” Carol is pictured with Hillary above.
Hillary isn’t certain what she wants to do as a career yet, but says that is something she will figure out at Cal. “Now that I'm at Berkeley, I'm trying to find the intersection between engineering and computer science.”
As for advice to current high school students seeking scholarships or grants, Hillary says to start local. This is certainly something that worked out for Hillary, who went to Hercules High, just a few miles from Bio-Rad's corporate headquarters.
“I truly appreciate the Bio-Rad community and the Bio-Rad scholarship – you made a major impact on me!”
To learn more about Bio-Rad's 2023 Scholarship Program, click here.
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