Stories

Coby Van Hartingsveldt is the kind of person who goes to eat at her favorite La Habra sushi restaurant and walks out with a job. She goes after opportunities. A student at Sonora High School in La Habra, Coby is part of the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program studying biomedical science and engineering. She’s also on a medical and nursing career pathway and working toward a medical assistant certification and gaining experience caring for patients.

Before her Career Exploration Experience with Medtronic, Coby was interested in biomedical engineering but didn’t know specifically what that role would be. She was excited to apply for the chance to gain real work experience in this field.

Matched with Medtronic Neurovascular in Irvine, Coby worked on a project involving the implications of AI in early detection and diagnosis of neurological conditions.

Starting with a general prompt, the students researched and examined how to apply AI to MRI Scans using image reconstruction technology. This reduces artifacts on MRI scans to allow easier identification of early signs of these conditions. Coby also had the opportunity to brainstorm product concepts utilizing these image reconstruction algorithms to not only clear images but provide diagnoses and second opinions to care providers.

Coby was mentored by Alicia MacDonald, a Process Development II Engineer at Medtronic, and a MS in Biomedical Engineering candidate at UC Irvine. Alicia is also an OC Fellows alumn.

In addition to learning on the job from the Medtronic team, Coby appreciated the learning sessions organized by CLAOC. She calls out a session with The DeBruce Foundation that had the students reflect on their strengths. Coby identified that working with information was an area she needed to strengthen to succeed in her chosen field.

“Through reading scientific journals and analyzing data I developed strengths in working with information and research that will be valuable in my future career,” Coby says.

Presenting final projects to the Medtronic team and executives during the students’ final on-site visit stands was a favorite moment where she was able to demonstrate so much of what she’d learned. The project was presented with employees and mentors present, encouraging the company to reach out to young individuals who would be interested in the field.