1. Rachael Lynne Melita
19 Bridge Street ∙ Slingerlands, NY 12159 ∙ (518) 545-5075 ∙ melitr@rpi.edu
EDUCATIONAND LEADERSHIP
RensselaerPolytechnicInstitute,Troy,NY May 2017
 Bachelorof Science – BiomedicalEngineering
 AcademicHonors:GPA:3.66; Dean’s List 6 out of 6 eligible semesters, Rensselaer Leadership Award,
Who’s Who Among Students In American Universities and Colleges 2016, Founders Award of Excellence 2016
SocietyofWomenEngineers,RPI Section
President,ExecutiveBoard March 2016 – Present
 Managing fifteen executive-board members.
 Coordinating, planning, and executing activities, business, and policies of RPI SWE.
 Approving the budget and overseeing allocation of $20,000 worthof section funds.
 Serve as the representative forRPI SWE and interfacing with Rensselaer faculty and staff.
EXPERIENCE
UndergraduateResearchAssistant,Gilbert Laboratory,RPI Fall 2015 – Present
 Fabricated polymer scaffolds withvarying nanotopography.
 Optimized and troubleshot electrospinning process.
 Ran controlledexperiments to analyze differences in astrocyteactivity and morphology.
 Presented applicable research during regular laboratory meetings.
Intern, Neural Stem Cell Institute, Rensselaer Spring 2016-Fall 2016
 Designed and executed experiments under minimal supervision.
 Engineered 2D and 3D stem cell models, as well as viralvectors to study CNS disease pathology.
 Wrote and optimized protocolsfor fetal cell isolation, transfection, and NPC generation.
UndergraduateResearchAssistant,Vashishth Laboratory, RPI Summer 2015
 Learned proper sterilization and sanitation techniques forstem cell experimentation.
 Counted, passed, and cryopreserved colonies of human adult mesenchymal stem cells.
UndergraduateResearch Assistant,Gross Laboratory,RPI Fall 2014 – Spring 2015
 Characterized several cutinases for better industrial application.
 Extracted and isolated bacterial proteins to verify purity and identity.
 Studied the stability of the enzymes in different temperature and pH environments.
Cell andMolecularBiologyLaboratory,ProfessorGeorge Plopper, RPI Fall 2014
 Led a group to complete an original experimental project.
 Analyzed growth changes of two bacterial species when exposed to environments withvarying oxygen
content.
 Co-authored a research article detailing the process and results.
Introductionto EngineeringDesign,ProfessorWilliam Foley,RPI Fall 2014
 Designed, developed, and tested a compactindoor hydroponic garden.
 Exercised leadership, time-management, and delegation to ensure timely completion of the project.
 Collaborated withhorticulture experts to fine-tune light, nutrient, and water delivery systems.
 Integrated project components and utilized professors’ criticism for further iteration and refinement.
SKILLS
ComputerSkills: Siemens NX,Solid Works,MATLAB, MicrosoftOfficeSuite, MetaMorph, ImageJ, Minitab,
SigmaXL, LabView,ZenBlue
InstrumentationSkills: UV/VISSpectroscopy,NanoDrop Spectroscopy,Circular Dichroism, Spectroscopy,
Dynamic Light Scattering, High PerformanceLiquid Chromatography, SDS-PAGE,
Electrospinning, Cell Culture, Stem Cell Culture, Immunofluorescence,Microscopy,
Imaging, qt-PCR,Transduction, Nucleofection
VOLUNTEERWORK
FundraisingOrganizer,Tie-DyeforThomas Fall 2012
 Organized, budgeted, designed, and manufactured tie-dye t-shirts to raise money for a classmate in need
of open-heart surgery.