VITERBI UNDERGRADUATE SYMPOSIUM

2022 Viterbi Undergraduate Symposium

Friday, April 29
11:00 am – 4:00 pm
Epstein Family Engineering Plaza 

The Viterbi Undergraduate Symposium provides Viterbi undergraduate students the opportunity to showcase their research and significant works to faculty, staff, students, and industry partners. Presented works may come from senior design capstone courses, honors thesis/projects, student design teams, and research conducted under faculty supervision (e.g. CURVE). Students will present their projects in person throughout the day. 

Day of Schedule

10:00 - 11:00 AM
Table and Poster Set Up

11:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Welcome & Keynote from Dr. Mahta Moghaddam
Poster Exhibits & Presentations
Judges Deliberation

Congratulations to our 2022 Symposium Winners! 

A: Aerospace, Astronautical and Mechanical Engineering
First Prize
The Effect of Orifice Configuration on Pintle Spray Cones
Mark McDermott, Sean Cornish, Zachary Fujita, Michael Smat, Patrick Trunfio
Faculty/PI: Robert Antypas, Yann Staelens

Second Prize 
Impact Attenuation of 3D Printed Thermoplastic Polyurethane Midsoles with Varying Lattice Geometries
Stephanie Kehoe, Kendall Work, Anna Mesibov, Edgar Sanchez
Faculty/PI: Robert Antypas

B: Biomedical Engineering
First Prize
A sensitive and specific strategy to identify mild concussions using connectomics, graph theory, and magnetic resonance imaging
Benjamin Hacker, Ammar Dharani, Jessica Zhu
Faculty/PI: Andrei Irimia

Second Prize 
Extracellular Vesicles as Therapeutic Agents
Veda Bansal
Faculty/PI: Eun Ji Chung

C: Chemical Engineering and Materials Science
First Prize
Fabrication of Tapered Fiber Probes for Localized Dye Excitation
Hari Sridhara
Faculty/PI: Andrea Armani

Second Prize 
A Novel Matrix Completion Algorithm for Reaction Dynamics
Stephen Jon Quinton 
Faculty/PI: Shaama Sharada; Urbashi Mitra

D: Computer Science
First Prize
What and How Are We Reporting in HRI? A Review and Recommendations for Reporting Recruitment, Compensation, and Gender
Julia Cordero
Faculty/PI: Maja Mataric, Tom Groechel

Second Prize 
Augmented Reality Appendages for Robots: Design Considerations and Recommendations for Maximizing Social and Functional Perception
Ipek Goktan, Karen Ly 
Faculty/PI: Maja Mataric, Tom Groechel


E: Electrical and Computer Engineering
First Prize
Robot-Aided Exploration and Analysis of Muddy Environments
Jake Futterman
Faculty/PI: Feifei Qian

Second Prize 
Laser speckle-based RF spectrometer
Radhika Bhuckory
Faculty/PI: Bhaskar Krishnamachari 

F: Industrial and Systems Engineering
First Prize
Two is More than Enough: Learning from the Boeing 737-MAX Crashes
Stefan Popescu, Danny Marchant, Tiffany Tam, Ramya Kunapalli, Zaki Beydoun
Faculty/PI: Najmedin Meshkati

Second Prize 
eLearning Impacts on Quality of Education for Adolescent Students with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder During the COVID-19 Era
Janet Choi
Faculty/PI: Yalda Khashe 



General Information


What is the purpose of the Viterbi Undergraduate Symposium?
The Symposium allows undergraduate students to showcase their research, capstone project, or other significant works to faculty, staff and peers. 

When and where will the Viterbi Undergraduate Symposium take place?
The 2022 Symposium will be held on Friday, April 29 from 11:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. outdoors at the Epstein Family Engineering Plaza and VHE Breezeway. 

When is the deadline to register for the Symposium?
The deadline to register is 11:59 p.m. on Friday, April 15.

How do I register as a presenter for the Symposium?
The online registration form will be available starting March 21 (after spring break). 

Who is invited to participate?
All Viterbi undergraduate students are invited to participate, including participants in research and honors programs, and graduating seniors enrolled in capstone classes. 

Who is invited to attend?
All members of the USC and Viterbi community are invited to attend, including faculty, administrators, staff, undergraduate and graduate students, friends, and family. Industry members are also invited to attend. No RSVP is  required, and attendees are welcome to stay for as long as they'd like.

What type of projects should be presented?
All types of projects are welcomed as long as they were developed through a senior capstone class, faculty supervised research, or student design team. Groups or individuals can either bring their physical project or display the details of the project via laptop presentation or poster.

What if the project is incomplete or failed?
All projects are welcomed at various stages. It is important for engineers to appreciate all phases of project design as well as to learn various challenges and mistakes.

Day Of Information


What time should I arrive for set-up?
You can start setting up an hour before the Symposium begins, and all exhibitors should be ready 15 minutes before the event begins. Each project team will be provided one 6-foot table, tablecloth, two chairs, an electrical outlet (if requested), an easel, and a sign with the project title.

Do all team members need to be present during the entire event?
All team members do not need to be present; however, at least one member of the team needs to be present throughout the program.

What is the dress code for the Symposium?
Business casual attire is appropriate.

Set Up


What materials should I bring to the Symposium?

  1. The physical project, a poster, or laptop presentation of the project.
  2. Handouts, if applicable, to enable attendees to learn more about your project.
  3. Any other items you feel will aid you in presenting your project.

What if my presentation requires special set-up needs?
We will do our best to accommodate special set-up requests based on availability. You may indicate all special needs in the “Special Set-Up Needs” section on the registration form. We will confirm your request prior to the event. Requests submitted less than 1 week before the Symposium will not be accommodated.

What size should my poster be?

Typically posters are 36" x 48" for small posters or 48" x 60" for regular size , but ask your PhD mentor or faculty what they would recommend. Easels are 65” tall. It would be helpful to mount the poster to foamboard to stand up against the easel. Be mindful we’ll be outside as well, so it would also be good to have some clips with you to secure the poster to the easel.