Testimonial

Brad Libbey

[MSME 1998, Ph.D. ME 2003]
Senior Scientist
U.S. Army Night Vision and Electronic Sensors Directorate
(Army, Night Vision Lab)
Ft. Belvoir, Virginia

Georgia Tech's active graduate student recruitment sparked my interest through a phone call. Dr. Wepfer was heading the ME graduate program at the time and personally invited me to come visit the campus because of my interest in acoustics. Georgia Tech was not on my active list nor had I applied, but I selfishly accepted the invitation so that I could visit a friend living in midtown Atlanta. I had some ideas of using human sound localization models for machines and after speaking with several potential advisors, Dr. Peter Rogers suggested he could fund my research idea. This was certainly more than I had hoped for; I applied online and the decision was made.

Not all research experiences are equal. While many graduate students feel bound to their thesis work, my experience was much more open with respect to topics I investigated. This diversity of education broadened my experience and opened up opportunities after graduation.

During the program lack of clear direction did pose a challenge, requiring self motivation and discipline to complete the dissertation. Ultimately, the scientific, communication, and project management skills I learned to overcome these challenges are the greatest assets for my career.

Georgia Tech's strength lies in the knowledge of those who study, teach, work, and interact academically at the university. Creative thinking is the most important skill to develop as a student, and Georgia Tech motivated me through constant exposure to fresh ideas of colleagues. While no alum of Tech will ever say it was easy to "get out," they will all admit that they are far better off for their efforts.

Anecdote

Upon graduation I was considered one of the most well traveled graduate students in the Mechanical Engineering program. My first summer at Tech, Dr. Rogers collaborated with the People's Republic of China for ocean acoustics experiments. I spent several weeks on a research vessel on the Yellow Sea, as well as some time on a bicycle on the streets of Beijing.

Subsequently, I vacationed, I mean studied at Georgia Tech Lorraine in Metz, France for six months. This was followed up by numerous working trips to Northern Idaho where I managed to squeeze in a little hiking, snowshoeing, and skiing. In addition to several domestic conferences, I was invited to attend a two week NATO speech and hearing conference in the hills of Tuscany, Italy. All this work! I needed some personal vacations so I added in Greece, New Zealand, St John, Turks and Caicos, and Honduras to unwind.