Aerospace Engineering Student Awarded Internship at Axiom Space Thanks to Fellowship

Maggie Lea, a mechanical and aerospace engineering student at Utah State University, was the Aggie to be named a Matthew Isakowitz Fellow in February.

Since then, Lea spent the summer in Houston interning with Axiom Space a company that is working to build the first commercial space station. She was a part of the hatch team, which is the pressured door that connects the parts of the space station and is the barrier between the station and space. Lea also assisted with design and hardware testing.

The Matthew Isakowitz Fellowship is an internship, mentorship, and networking opportunity awarded to students pursuing careers in the commercial spaceflight industry. Lea stated that the internship gave her the hands-on experience she needed to apply what she learned at USU in the real world.

“It was helpful to learn how to work with a team and to not be afraid to fail. Try your best, but know it’s okay to ask for help and admit you don’t know how to do something,” she said.

Lea’s executive mentor for the fellowship was Dava Newman, the director of the MIT Media Lab and a former deputy administrator of NASA. She credited Newman for being a strong female role model as a woman in the space flight industry,

After graduation, Lea plans to earn a master’s degree and a Ph.D. and is looking forward to learning about different options for her career path through the fellowship’s mentorship and networking opportunities.

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Writer: Sydney Dahle, sydney.dahle@usu.edu, 435-797-7512

Contact: Maggie Lea, margaret.lea@usu.edu