Margaret Hall is a Carleton College Class of 2025 Chemistry alum with several years of undergraduate research experience at Carleton and Northwestern's McCormick School of Engineering. Her interests center on experimental chemistry and chemical engineering, particularly how materials can be synthesized, characterized, and connected to useful physical properties.

Previous research experience: I spent multiple years as an undergraduate research assistant at Carleton and also worked in a research role at McCormick. A realistic description of my work would include preparing chemical samples, using spectroscopy or other characterization tools, tracking experimental conditions carefully, and comparing results across batches to understand structure-property relationships. Teaching assistant roles also made me much more comfortable explaining techniques to newer students.

How I got started: I got started by asking a chemistry professor after an introductory lab course whether there was a way to keep doing experimental work outside class. I began with routine lab tasks, returned over multiple terms, and gradually learned enough to understand the research question rather than just the protocol.

Open to being contacted: Maybe, ask me first

Preferred contact: LinkedIn

Advice/notes: chemistry research; materials research; chemical engineering; laboratory technique; long-term faculty research; summer research; TA experience; spectroscopy and characterization; preparing for research after college

Links

Location

Northfield

Northfield, MN 55057, USA