The Knowledge Review The 20 Most Innovative STEM College and Universiti | Page 17

• A prominent alumnus is Dave House, a
longtime Intel executive whose team was
responsible for the famous marketing slogan,
“Intel Inside.” House has contributed millions to
Michigan Tech, endowed several professorships
and chaired a successful $200 million capital
campaign.
Student Opportunities & Careers
Michigan Tech’s Career Services places a
remarkable 94 percent of graduates in jobs in
their fields within six months of graduation.
Nearly 500 companies come all the way to
Houghton for the university’s Fall and Spring
Career Fairs, where more than 3,500 students
meet employers and explore internships,
co-ops, and job opportunities. Michigan Tech
participates in Handshake, an app developed by
Michigan Tech students which connects
employers and potential employees online.
Handshake has now spread to hundreds of
colleges and universities across the country. Tech
also sponsors CareerFEST, a month of special
programs surrounding Career Fair, during which
various industries such as railroads, automotive
and manufacturing are spotlighted.
When students are n’t in class or conducting
research, they participate in more than 220
student organizations, music and fine arts, and
cultural events including the Upper Peninsula of
Michigan’s largest multicultural festival, the
Parade of Nations. Snowfall averages more than
200 inches a year, making Michigan Tech an
outdoors person’s paradise. In fact, Tech students
celebrate their snowy climate with a Winter
Carnival every February, building enormous
snow statues and competing in wacky games
such as ice bowling and human dogsled racing.
Whether it’s the All-Nighter frenzy to complete
a Winter Carnival snow statue, or chasing the
Northern Lights right outside your dorm, there’s
a lot to do at Michigan Technological University.
About a Researcher Motivated by the Need to
Create a Sustainable Society
Joshua M. Pearce is an academic engineer and
materials scientist at Michigan Tech known for his
work on protocrystallinity, photovoltaic technology,
open-source-appropriate technology, and open-source
hardware including RepRap 3D printers. Joshua was
hired as part of a Strategic Faculty Hiring Initiative in
next-generation energy systems. He has been
recognized internationally for his work on low-cost
solar energy, as well as open-source 3-D printing. His
research has been featured in publications such as USA
Today and US News & World Report and broadcast
outlets including ABC, NBC, CBS and CBC. He won
the 2017 People’s Choice Award from Opensource.com.
Joshua received his Ph.D. in Materials Engineering
from the Pennsylvania State University. He then
developed the first Sustainability program in the
Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education and
helped develop the Applied Sustainability graduate
engineering program while at Queen’s University,
Canada. He currently is a Professor cross-appointed in
the Department of Materials Science & Engineering
and in the Department of Electrical & Computer
Engineering at Michigan Tech, where he runs the Open
Sustainability Technology Research Group. He is
currently on sabbatical as a Fulbright-Aalto University
Distinguished Chair
(2017-2018). The Pearce Research Group at Michigan
Tech in Open Sustainability Technology focuses on
open and applied sustainability, which is the application
of science and innovation to ensure a better quality of
life for all, now and into the future, in a just and
equitable manner, while living within the limits of
supporting ecosystems. T R