Graduate Student Research in PracticePoint

WPI Graduate Student working on a machine

Graduate students choose WPI for a number of reasons. The small, collaborative environment supports interdisciplinary research, and the faculty/student ratio allows for meaningful mentorships. With the addition of PracticePoint as a state-of-the-art health research facility, WPI expects that more graduate students will pursue groundbreaking inquiries in the healthcare field and bring their ideas to life. 

“I don’t want people to think this is a robotics center," says Greg Fischer. "We really want to engage everybody in developing these systems, from data privacy experts to mechanical engineering students interested in prosthetics to computer scientists with a passion for telemedicine. PracticePoint not only allows interdisciplinary teams to get together—it is built for it.”

PracticePoint also addresses a long-standing challenge for healthcare researchers—limited access to clinical settings and equipment. When Christopher Nycz ’16 MS, ’18 PhD, was studying robotics engineering at WPI and needed to use devices such as MRI machines that were not in the lab, he had to secure access to sites off campus. Today,as a research scientist at PracticePoint, he knows just how fortunate students are to have easy access to equipment to quickly make changes, fix problems, and manufacture components. Explore our health technology and suites available like the motion capture lab, MRI imaging center, neurotech suite, and more.

Getting hands-on with an MRI machine gives you insights that sitting in a class about medical physics can’t give you. I think having access to it is going to be very beneficial for students.
  • Christopher Nycz ’16 MS, ’18 PhD
  • Research Scientist
  • PracticePoint

Current graduate students interested in research collaborations or projects at PracticePoint should contact practicepoint_projects@wpi.edu.

Why Christopher Chose WPI

Christopher, a PhD graduate in Robotics Engineering from WPI, explains why research that matters and solving important real-world programs is different here. “Knowing that there’s a practical application, it’s easy to be motivated,” he says. To learn more about the great minds pursuing discovery and innovation with purpose at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, watch more videos about current and past graduate students.