Sarah Loewecke outside of Freeman Hall (Photos by Kelly Prinz)
Sarah Loewecke wanted to be an opera singer or an astronaut when she grew up.
“My dad was like, ‘Pick one,’ and, well, I didn't!” she says with a smile.
Loewecke combines many of her arts-and-science interests at Fordham. She’s an engineering physics major in the pre-law program, and two student-led clubs—Fashion for Philanthropy and the Running Club—give her community and endless ways to make the most of Fordham’s NYC location, including the Bronx’s many green spaces.
From Space Telescopes to Climate Impacts
Loewecke’s ultimate goal is to go to law school and practice patent law. An engineering physics background is ideal for that, she says. After taking a course with Fordham physics professor Stephen Holler—and taking advantage of a summer research opportunity at BYU—she became fascinated with the field of optics.
“It was a really random niche I found,” she says, explaining that she’s especially drawn to large-scale applications, “specifically for space telescopes and seeing further into the universe.”
For her summer research project, Loewecke studied film layers for mirrors used in lenses. Her goal? Help determine the most cost-effective way for “the new NASA missions to be able to see as far as they need to see into the universe.”
Loewecke’s work was published in the Journal of Astronomical Telescopes, Instruments, and Systems, and she presented it at a meeting of SPIE, the international society for optics and photonics. In addition, she earned an Optica Amplify scholarship, which is awarded to only 10 Black students each year.
Fordham’s program in Granada, Spain, gave her an opportunity to conduct environmental research. She compared ways of measuring the height of Earth’s planetary boundary layer, which is vital for forecasting weather, predicting air quality, and advancing climate research.
Sarah Loewecke's research experience helped her prepare for a career in data analysis.
How Mentorship Set Her Up for Success
That research helped her land a job as a data analyst after graduation. As she prepares to apply to law school, she’s grateful for the support she received from her Fordham professors, who connected her with research opportunities.
“Knowing the professors on a personal basis has been so pivotal for me,” she says. “I went to a really big high school, and honestly I have better, closer relationships with my professors here, which has been—with recommendation letters and sending me opportunities—very instrumental.”