Earlier this week, graduates from the W Booth School of Engineering Practice and Technology crossed the stage at McMaster Engineering’s Spring Convocation. Among them were three outstanding students whose leadership and dedication have left a lasting impact on the McMaster community. Meet the W Booth School grads on the rise, below.
Faustina Onyinye Ugwuede
Program: Automation Systems Engineering Technology
W Booth School shoutout: A special shout out to Tom Wanyama for his support throughout my academic journey.
Why did you choose your program?: Automation Systems is a multidisciplinary field that allows students to explore the integration of various fields of engineering to design efficient systems. It provides opportunities to develop a wide range of skills while working with technologies such as robotics, control systems and industrial automation. Through hands-on labs, projects and collaborative learning, students gain practical experience that prepares them to address real-world engineering challenges across a wide range of industries.
Proudest achievement: I had the opportunity to start the Smart Systems Club through the Learning Factory, where I helped create a collaborative space for students interested in automation, embedded systems, robotics and emerging technologies. Through this initiative, I worked with peers to organize hands-on projects and technical workshops that encouraged practical learning beyond the classroom.
Most memorable experience: One memorable experience that shaped my journey was working on hands-on projects and having the opportunity to start the Smart Systems Club through the Learning Factory. Working with classmates on technical projects gave me valuable hands-on experience and helped me better understand how concepts apply in real-world settings.
Next steps after graduation: After graduation, I plan to continue building my career in automation, gaining industry experience in areas such as control systems, robotics, and industrial automation. I am most excited about applying the skills and knowledge I developed throughout my program to real-world projects and continuing to grow both professionally and personally.
Erik Terlouw
Program: Automative and Vehicle Engineering Technology
W Booth School shoutout: I have to give a shoutout to Moein Mehrtash. To me, he started out simply as a stellar fluid mechanics and kinematics professor, but as I got to know him better, his technical expertise and genuine pride in his students’ success really makes him stand out from the rest.
Why did you choose your program?: Growing up, I would watch Top Gear with my Dad on school nights. Since then I’ve always had a love for cars and an ambition to contribute to the engineering and design that goes into them. The BTech automotive program was a perfect choice to learn about the technical aspects of mechanical engineering, while leaning into that automotive niche with unique classes and labs that aren’t offered anywhere else.
Proudest achievement: I’m definitely most proud of the capstone project that my peers and I completed last December. Together, we were able to build a custom electric minibike from scratch, with the goal of improving balance through an innovative approach. The time and effort put into designing, sourcing, fabricating, coding, troubleshooting and testing paid off at our capstone showcase, where we could show the final result to our family and friends.
Most memorable experience: Living in a student house with some fellow BTech students is most memorable to me. Whether it was the 3D print farm we had running in the basement, or soldering the connections for a robot on the dining room table, the whole house kind of became our workshop for the latest group project we had to finish. Living in close quarters made it easy to brainstorm ideas and promoted a level of innovation I’m not sure I will see anywhere else.
Next steps after graduation: Since January, I’ve been working as a product designer for Tiercon Corp. It’s been really cool to see the stages of development and the progression from a CAD model towards a production part found on a vehicle. I’m excited to be working on my very own program with Toyota and I hope to flex the design skills I’ve been building all these years.
Albert Ding
Program: Master of Engineering Design
W Booth School shout out: I’d love to shout out two professors who have really shaped my journey.
Professor Robert Fleisig was an incredible professor. He consistently opened doors to experiences that helped me grow and provided invaluable guidance during our work with real world clients. His passion for design thinking is genuinely contagious, and he gave me a real appreciation for the discipline that I carry with me to this day.
Professor Allan MacKenzie is someone whose impact on me kept growing throughout my degree. He first taught me about intrapreneurship, showing me how to take design thinking and apply it to real business problems. What made it even more special was getting to come back as a TA in that same course, and then as a research assistant helping to design a new course rooted in the same ideas. That full-circle experience meant a lot to me and Allan has helped me experience this program from three different perspectives.
Why did you choose your program?: Design and problem-solving have always been my passion, and Engineering Design is a program that puts those things front and centre. What drew me to it was how it combines creative thinking with real-world application. It’s about building the right things for the right people.
Proudest achievement: During my time at McMaster, I had the opportunity to work as a research assistant with Professor Allan MacKenzie, where I helped design a new human-centred design course. I also completed a four-month internship at IBM as a consultant, which gave me hands-on experience solving real-world problems. I placed third at the Better Together event hosted by St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton for our AR Hospital Navigation project, and I also competed in the Digital Society Hacks competition. These experiences pushed me to grow as both a designer and a problem-solver.
Most memorable experience: The Better Together event at St. Joseph’s Hamilton Healthcare (SJHH) in my very first semester stands out. We got to visit, walk through the hospital, and work directly with staff to understand the challenges they face. That was the moment design stopped feeling abstract to me because you’re suddenly designing for real people in a real environment. What also made it special was the people I was surrounded by; everyone in that room genuinely wanted to make someone else’s life better. It set the tone for how I approach design to this day.
Next steps after graduation: I’m currently working full-time at IBM as an Associate Consultant, so I’m already hitting the ground running. I’m excited to keep working with clients on complex problems and I plan to leverage the resources and opportunities at IBM to drive change from within through intrapreneurship and design-led initiatives. Down the road, I’d love to build my own products rooted in the design principles I developed at W Booth School.