Jeffrey Wang: Continuing an Engineering Legacy

When Jeffrey Wang, intern, Nacelle Aerodynamics, became involved with Pratt & Whitney, he was only a child, attending "Take Your Child to Work" days with his late father, Chester. Chester was a staff engineer in Aerothermal Systems for 16 years who passed away in December 2014.

Wang remembers going to the events and learning about his father's work. "I went to work with my dad for the first time in third or fourth grade," he recalled. "It was a fun day, and I enjoyed learning about his job."

As Wang grew, so did his interest in engineering, leading him to pursue a degree in mechanical engineering at Pennsylvania State University. Originally, Wang had intended to study petroleum engineering after his father shared with him an interesting article on the subject. He still remains involved with the Society of Petroleum Engineers chapter at his university but has since opted to pursue other engineering disciplines. To balance his demanding course load, Wang makes time for several hobbies including working out, hiking and playing soccer.

As a Pratt & Whitney intern, Wang constantly finds real world application of his studies. He credits his supervisor, Bob Malecki, and coworkers with playing a huge role in teaching him valuable engineering knowledge that he has not yet been exposed to in school.

"I consider everyone in my group to be my mentor," Wang said. "We're a small group, and it feels like a community; everybody in our community has knowledge that they are always willing to share. We want to see each other succeed."

Wang's summer project follows in the footsteps of his father, who pioneered the use of computational fluid dynamics for various applications within Aerothermal Systems.

Wang's favorite aspect about working at Pratt & Whitney is the fact that there is so much to learn. Before he started his internship, for example, he did not expect to learn as much about computer science as he did. He appreciates the newfound skill.

Wang plans to apply the technical skills he has accrued during his Pratt & Whiney internship to the discipline of thermodynamics. He intends to continue his father's legacy as an engineer.