University of Cincinnati
08/04/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 08/04/2026 19:56
From UC co-op to world traveler
From UC co-op to world traveler
Engineering student gets first taste of international travel working at CERN
3 minute read August 4, 2026 Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn Share on Reddit Print Story Like
Zarria Gray probably had impostor syndrome when she hesitated to apply for an unusual University of Cincinnati co-op that would allow her to work at CERN's Large Hadron Collider in Geneva, Switzerland.
Two engineering students were needed to help build a particle detector for an experiment led by UC Professor Philip Ilten with colleague and UC Professor Michael Sokoloff. And Gray hoped to be one of them. (See: UC-built detector at CERN looks for enticing evidence to explain dark matter.)
A first-generation college student, Gray had never before been out of the country. So she reached out for advice from her mentor, UC College of Engineering and Applied Science Professor Muthar al-Ubaidi.
"Was I in any way capable of being an applicant for this opportunity?" she said. "He believed in me."
Zarria Gray took her first international trip as a UC co-op student in the College of Engineering and Applied Science. After working in Switzerland, she learned that she really liked traveling. Photo/Provided
Gray got the job and packed for Europe.
"I was very scared. I have four brothers. I'm the only girl. My mom is always worried about something bad happening to me," she said.
But she set aside her fears and set off for Geneva. To her surprise and delight, she loved it. She hiked in the mountains every weekend. She helped build some of the frames for the plates in the detector.
Suddenly, the world seemed a much smaller place, she said.
"It was absolutely incredible. Getting to work with the most intelligent people in the world was mind-boggling," she said.
Zarria graduated from UC in 2025 with a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering technology. She parlayed her experience building a hydraulic-powered bike with her classmates for her senior design project into a job offer from engineering company IMI, which specializes in fluid and motion control systems.
She was asked to be a judge in the National Fluid Power Association's fluid-powered vehicle challenge that she had competed in as a UC student.
Now her work takes her all over the country and abroad. She got to go to England. This summer, she's moving from Chicago to Los Angeles.
"CERN helped me get my wings to venture out and fly," Gray said. "Now I'm starting a magnet collection on my refrigerator from the places I've been."
Featured image at top: UC student Zarria Gray said she enjoyed hiking in the Swiss Alps when she was not working in her mechanical engineering technology co-op at CERN's Large Hadron Collider. Photo/Provided
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