Schulich student hopes to ‘push boundaries’ for the future of engineering

Driven by a passion to help others, Amanda Tamakloe could never have imagined the academic journey she would embark on at the University of Calgary. 

What started as a desire to pursue medicine quickly changed to engineering, leading her to get involved in almost every initiative she could find, including executive roles with Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) and volunteer work with the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) UCalgary Chapter. 

Tamakloe’s leadership, hard work and perseverance has earned her the Violet King Engaged Scholar Award, a joint initiative between the UCalgary Students’ Union and the Office of Institutional Commitments. The award recognizes the talents and achievements of Black, racialized and Indigenous engaged scholars. 

“I was humbled by the recognition and privileged to receive the award,” Tamakloe says. “It’s an award named after Canada's first black female lawyer, a trailblazer and an individual who strived for excellence, despite the odds.” 

She gives credit to her faith as well as family members and everyone who gave her an opportunity to work in spaces and for causes she’s passionate about. 

Making a positive impact 

Originally intending to focus on medicine, Tamakloe spent a summer volunteering at a hospital in her home country of Ghana. She quickly realized, however, that she wanted to change focus and moved towards studying mathematics, chemistry and economics. And that led, in turn, to her current path. 

“As I delved deeper into these subjects, I found myself captivated by the possibilities they offered, and it was through this exploration that I discovered chemical engineering,” Tamakloe says. “It was a perfect intersection of my interests, where I could apply my problem-solving skills and scientific curiosity to make an impact.” 

She says it was a definite departure from her original plan, but for her it was an important choice. 

Inspired by new connections 

Tamakloe’s first year at UCalgary came during the COVID-19 pandemic, which once again changed her perspective on learning. During her first summer in Calgary, Tamakloe took advantage of an opportunity to research with Dr. Ivan Detchev, MSc’10, PhD’16, through the Program for Undergraduate Research (PURE) Award. She spent 16 weeks looking into engineering education and how teaching and learning were impacted by the pandemic. 

Tamakloe says this introduced her to new people and experiences, such as presenting her research at the Canadian Chemical Engineering Conference in 2022. “This experience not only jumpstarted my research journey, but also granted me the opportunity to meet and work with unique and brilliant minds like D’Andre Wilson-Ihejirika, the executive director of TalentED YYC” she says. “However, this time with a Black, Indigenous and People of Colour focus, which has been under-addressed in Canada, showing a gap in the literature.” 

Tamakloe says addressing that challenge has become her main motivation as she looks to the future. 

A life-changing experience 

As Tamakloe gets ready to graduate in the spring and pursues an engineer-in-training role, she says the experiences she’s gained over the last few years have been eye-opening. She hopes that sharing her story will inspire future students to embrace their interests and follow their curiosity inside and outside the classroom. 

“Every experience, every subject you delve into, can help shape your path in unexpected ways,” Tamakloe says. “When I started on my research and extracurricular journey, I had no idea where it could possibly lead me, but it’s been life changing.” 

She says she’s particularly excited to stay involved in research where she can “push boundaries of innovation and tackle complex challenges,” especially in areas that haven’t been explored in Canada. 

Read more about the Violet King Engaged Scholar Award.