Student Spotlight: Khandoker Salem

Khandoker Salem, an international student studying abroad from Bangladesh, is pursuing his Ph.D. in a Forest Biomaterials. As a Graduate Research Assistant, his research focuses on the chemical modification of nanocellulose with Dr. Lucian Lucia and Dr. Lokendra Pal.  When he isn’t conducting research in a lab, Salem is active in the Bangladesh Student Association (BSA) at NC State, as the president of the organization.

Tell us about your hands-on experience. 

I am an international student, so studying here is studying abroad for me. I completed my master’s in Chemical Engineering at University of Dhaka in Bangladesh and worked on the functionalization of Carbon Nanotubes for my thesis. I then joined the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission for six months after completion of MS as a research fellow. Then I joined as a faculty at the University of Dhaka. I worked there for a year and half before leaving to pursue an MS in Materials Science and Engineering at NC State, where I worked on determination of effect of shock wave propagation through nanolaminates interface using COMB potential with Dr. Donald Brenner.

How has your study abroad experience impacted you?

This experience helped me to acquire diversified knowledge on both experimental and computational field. I believe that I will be able to use the knowledge to teach others in a better way.

What did you learn about yourself during your experience?

I found that I am more of an experimental guy rather than doing computational work. I also found that I prefer research work more than taking courses since the lab experiments helps me learn more and do critical thinking in solving problems..

How has this opportunity or experience prepared you for your future career?

My previous experiences have led me to choose the right path in my Ph.D. career. I am now sure that I want to work with natural polymer, which has been possible after working with CNTs, Polymers and Computational stuff.

Why was participating in this experience important to you?

Being a College of Natural Resources student is important to me since it gives me a wide opportunity to work on natural polymer.

Why would you recommend this experience to other students?

I highly recommended studying at the College of Natural Resources for anyone who wants to work on biomaterials or natural polymers. I also really like the academic atmosphere and find the teacher-student relation very warm and friendly.