Erik Andersen

Erik Andersen was enticed to join the Arizona State University faculty by a line in the university’s charter that reads ASU is “…measured not by whom it excludes, but by whom it includes and how they succeed…”.

“I loved ASU’s academic vision to not be exclusive but rather to be as inclusive as possible and teach all the students that are willing to learn,” he says.

Andersen earned both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering from the University of Utah and decided he wanted to continue a career in research. He stayed at the University of Utah after he earned a doctorate in mechanical engineering, where his work focused on wireless power transfer to small biomedical implants.

“This research really uses a lot of system dynamics and optimization, both of which are subjects that I love to teach,” he says.

This fall, Andersen begins as a lecturer in the School for Engineering of Matter, Transport and Energy, one of the seven schools in the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering, where he will be teaching MAE 318 System Dynamics and Control I and MAE 301 Applied Experimental Statistics.

“Students in my class should be prepared to come away with how applicable and useful these topics are in the ‘real world,’” he says.

Andersen says that he is excited to teach and interact with his students.

“I love helping students dive deep into the subject matter and understand the ‘why’ of all the equations, applications and principles they see in my class,” he says.

Outside of the classroom, Andersen is an avid fan of the NBA and the Utah Jazz. He also recently discovered a new love of skiing.

“But I am also excited to pick up new and more desert-appropriate hobbies,” he says.

Meet the newest faculty members of the Fulton Schools of Engineering here.

Written by Erik Wirtanen