Imelda Adjei

Chemical Engineering, Class of ‘23

Inspiration comes in many forms. For Imelda  Adjei, it came in the shape of a dragon. Growing up in West Africa, in a suburb of Accra, the capital of Ghana, she loved American animation, delighting in the superpowered hijinks and uplifting messages of films like “The Incredibles.” Animation also introduced her to the aforementioned mythical beast, via the 2010 film “How to Train Your Dragon.” “I came to believe,” says  Adjei, “that we could introduce those creatures to our world.” She took that idea to Wesley Girls High School in Cape Coast, the oldest secondary school in Ghana. “In the first year we had a project involving the enzymes in laundry detergent and that got me into protein engineering. It fascinated me, the way a reaction could be going very slowly, and then enzymes, this helper chemical, could be added and the reaction would grow exponentially. It's almost like magic."

Fast forward to 2021:  Adjei has moved to New York City, fulfilling new dreams at Columbia Engineering, like working to improve water in a village in Morocco with Engineers Without Borders. As for dragons? Don’t count them out.

What made you choose Columbia?

In Ghana we study only one thing in high school. If you are a science major, then you don’t take art or history or music. When I was looking at Columbia’s program, I noticed that as an engineer I could include subjects that interest me outside of science. So far, I’ve taken Spanish, African American history, and a class on the Ottoman Empire, which fascinates me—a superpower for 600 years that simply disappeared. Next semester I’m looking forward to taking Masterpieces of Western Music. I like pop music, but classical is my favorite.

How were you introduced to Western classical music?

Through cartoons! My father had me study piano for a while, and it made me realize how truly exceptional the great composers were. The Masterpieces class includes going to an opera—my first.

It’s interesting that you chose a major in high school. That’s very different from the American system of education. Why science?

My siblings all chose science because we were interested in making things. My brother took computer engineering because he wanted to design games. My sister, Ermyntrude, wanted to be a doctor and is a Phd student in biomedical engineering, doing research at Northwestern. She is my role model and gives me lots of good advice—like to take my time and enjoy what I’m doing, and to reach out to teachers and fellow students and ask for help if I need it.

Do you have a dream job?

I would like something that involves both research and industry. Lately I’ve been considering shifting from chemical to biomedical engineering. That’s partly to do with my sister, though I would focus on the cellular aspects, and she is working in robotics. I was inspired by a TED talk by [Columbia’s] Professor Tal Danino. His research [in synthetic engineering] involves programming bacteria to help diagnose and treat cancer cells, and that aligns with my own interest—manipulating genetic code to help us become stronger and hopefully eradicate diseases like cancer, tumors, and Parkinson’s Disease. Thinking back to chemical engineering, many processes in the human body are aided by enzymes. I'm interested in the possibility of creating different enzymes that can help the human body increase its functionality.

What do you do for fun?

Bike rides in Central Park and swimming at Dodge Fitness Center. And I still see and love animated films, like “Raya and the Last Dragon.” It speaks to an issue our current society faces, the need to overcome distrust. The protagonist sacrifices her life so her village will work together to stay safe.

And creating dragons? Is that still on your bucket list?

Not exactly creating dragons. But I can’t help but think how great it would be to have a theme park like the one in the film Jurassic Park. Or a less dangerous version of that!

Student Spotlight

I was inspired by a TED talk by Professor Tal Danino. His research involves programming bacteria to help diagnose and treat cancer cells, and that aligns with my own interest—manipulating genetic code to help us become stronger and hopefully eradicate diseases like cancer, tumors, and Parkinson’s Disease.

Imelda Adjei
Chemical Engineering, Class of ‘23