Co-op Student Profile

Co-op employers:

• E-One Moli Energy (Spring and Fall 2023)
• Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Institute for Nanotechnology, Germany (Summer 2025)

Isaac Lauren's first co-op term in 2023 involved studying lithium-ion cells at E-One Moli Energy. "My only lab experience was in the classroom, and at E-One I began to love what research really meant: asking questions, collecting data, but maybe not always coming to the answer you want or expect. After completing my second year at SFU I was excited to be able to see how research and development functioned on a large scale and nervous to be part of a corporate body with many levels. I had fun doing my own research, building cells, collecting and analyzing data, presenting it to the R&D department, and formulating an extensive technical report on my projects, which went into the vast body of research collected by co-op students over many years."

Isaac's next co-op role took him further afield. Through the RISE program hosted by the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst, the German Academic Exchange Service, he was offered a position in the lab of Prof. Stefanie Dehnen, a well-established inorganic chemist in Karlsruhe, Germany.

"I worked in the electrochemistry group studying solid-state electrolytes for sodium-ion batteries. I was able to utilise and improve skills I had already learned in a different context, while also gaining experience with new tools and synthetic techniques."

"The most fun I had was becoming friends and socializing with everyone in the group. Over time I found I had much in common with everyone in the group: from literature and classical music to cuisine, I found myself forming lasting friendships. The group not only consisted of great scientists, it also consisted of violinists, bassists, cosplayers, banjoists, choir singers and composers, all things which I relate to. I also had to live independently and totally alone in a foreign country. I let myself explore my interests in the musical and visual arts in a country with a rich history of both, which allowed me to reflect on my goals for the future."

"Co-op has been the most valuable experience for me during my degree, and it has changed my outlook on what obtaining a degree in the sciences means. The work I have been lucky to do in the lab has often reinforced what I learned in class, and vice versa. Co-op has not only allowed me to prove I am capable of doing research at an international scale, but it has also allowed me to reconnect with other passions."