Ritwik Sharma

This spring, Ritwik Sharma is achieving his childhood dream of becoming an aerospace engineer, a path that began with a childhood curiosity about aircraft and how they work.

At Arizona State University, Sharma’s interest grew into an undergraduate education experience filled with leadership, service, and academic excellence. He also completed his studies as a Grand Challenges Scholar.

Now, he is earning a bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering with a concentration in astronautics and a minor in materials science and engineering from the School for Engineering of Matter, Transport and Energy, part of the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering.

As a sophomore, Sharma interned at the Savannah River National Laboratory, where he researched threats facing satellites and how to overcome them. He later presented the work at that year’s SmallSat Education Conference in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

“I found that experience to be really rewarding,” he says. “I learned what it’s like to participate in research at a national lab.”

Sharma also worked on a team project through ASU’s Technology Innovation Laboratory course. With two other students, he helped develop a solution to improve passenger aircraft by replacing existing parts with topologically optimized, additively manufactured ones, reducing overall weight and saving millions in fuel over time.

“Our solution was so good that our team was selected by Honeywell for future collaboration through the Honeywell Incubator Program,” he says.

His ASU experience also took him beyond aerospace. Through the Global Intensive Experience in India with ASU’s School of Civic, Economic Thought, and Leadership, Sharma contributed to designing a curriculum for Barefoot College International to teach semi-literate women the basics of resistors and circuit design. The project supported efforts to expand the use of solar power to electrify rural villages.

Outside the classroom, Sharma served as president of the Amateur Radio Club at ASU, a more than 90-year-old student organization. As its president, he restored the group’s on-campus presence and supported its continuation.

One moment during his time at ASU solidified his decision to pursue a career in the aerospace industry.

“Watching Artemis I launch in 2022 was a gratifying experience,” he says. “It made me look forward to being in the industry.”

Another came through Joseph O’Rourke, an assistant professor in the School of Earth and Space Exploration, who gave students the opportunity to operate an instrument on Mars Odyssey, a spacecraft currently orbiting Mars. He says that moment shaped his future aspirations.

After graduation, Sharma plans to work in industry, most likely in Arizona. In the long term, he hopes to contribute to space exploration.

“I’d like to work on projects related to space exploration, especially future missions to the Moon and Mars,” he says.

Favorites

Hobby: Amateur radio
TV show: Andor
Movie: Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
Activity: Amateur astronomy
Game: Deltarune

Read about other exceptional graduates of the Fulton Schools’ spring 2026 class.

Written by Roger Ndayisaba