By Sarah R. Schwartz ’10

Computer Science major Jaime Mickelson ’10 has been researching a wireless sensor network and designed and implemented a wireless routing protocol called READY (Routing based on Early Aggregation and Dynamic Paths) with fellow student Tabatha Simpson ’10, under the direction of Dr. Yanxia Jia, Assistant Professor of Computer Science. With a job lined up and graduate school on the horizon, Mickelson’s dedication has paid off.

In 2005 Mickelson graduated with a B.A. in Criminal Justice and Political Science from a large public university. Unable to find a job with her degree, she decided to go back to school for Computer Science.

As a non-traditional student pursing a second undergraduate degree, the availability of night courses at Arcadia was crucial, allowing her to continue working full-time while still receiving medical benefits. Arcadia’s intimate learning environment also attracted Mickelson. “At my previous college, even my upper-level classes had anywhere from 35-50 students, but at Arcadia, my classes have no more than 20,” she says.

“Every professor I have had at Arcadia has had a wealth of knowledge in his or her field and the small class sizes have allowed each professor to know me by my first name, even after I completed their course,” she says. “This has provided many mentoring opportunities, and has allowed me to feel very comfortable in approaching each, as well as asking for help when needed.”

Having personal rapport with her professors proved particularly important when it came to doing research. Arcadia undergraduate students are encouraged to undertake research and co-publish results with the assistance of faculty members who have well-established reputations in their fields. Under the direction of Jia, Mickelson has co-published two articles to date.

These publications and recent research experiences have helped to establish Mickelson as a serious computer scientist while showcasing his potential for academic research—vital keys to success as Mickelson plans to move onto a graduate program. It is also invaluable in industry as research and development is an essential component of every major technology company.

Mickelson is graduating in May, but she already has a job in her field. She will begin working full time as a Systems Engineer for Intel in Folsom, Calif., in June 2010. She says, “I absolutely believe that my recent research experience and my time at Arcadia has and will continue to help me achieve my goals.”

1. Yanxia Jia, Jaime Mickelson, Tabatha Simpson, and Qiang Ye, “READY: Routing Based on Early Aggregation and Dynamic Paths for Wireless Sensor Networks”, International Conference on Next Generation Wireless Systems, Melbourne, Australia, October 12-14, 2009.

2. 2. Y. Jia, J. Mickelson, T. Simpson, Q. Ye. “Routing with Localized Clusters for Wireless Sensor Networks”, Journal of Internet Technology, Special Issue on Mobile Internet, 2010. (accepted)