Biosketch
Caden Ashmore is an Electrical Engineering and Computer Science dual major at UMass Lowell with interests in systems engineering, artificial intelligence, product development, and engineering leadership. He is a member of the Commonwealth Honors Program and Eta Kappa Nu engineering honor society and is pursuing UMass Lowell’s bachelor’s-to-master’s pathway in Computer Engineering.
Caden has been drawn to engineering from an early age by the opportunity to creatively solve difficult problems and turn ideas into working systems. His technical experiences have ranged from designing and researching an autonomous sailboat navigation system to working as an Engineering Intern II at BAE Systems in Nashua, New Hampshire. At BAE Systems, he gained experience across Radio Frequencies (RF) and Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) development programs, laboratory testing, data analysis, and systems engineering. He also served as the modeling lead for a multidisciplinary autonomous vehicle intern project. Following his summer 2026 internship, he continued working with BAE Systems part-time during the academic year.
Leadership has become an equally important part of Caden’s engineering education. He serves as President of the Francis College of Engineering Ambassadors, where he works with students, faculty, and college leadership to strengthen the engineering community. In 2026, he founded the Engineering Leaders Council, bringing leaders from engineering student organizations together to improve communication, share resources, and create opportunities for collaboration across the college. His other involvement includes representing UMass Lowell in the Massachusetts Artificial Intelligence (AI) Coalition and serving as Secretary of the Artificial Intelligence Multidisciplinary Society.
Caden believes leadership is about more than guiding a team toward a goal; it is about creating systems, opportunities, and environments that enable other people to succeed. His experiences at BAE Systems reinforced his interest in becoming an engineering leader by showing him how important communication, collaboration, and systems thinking are alongside technical expertise.
Outside of academics and engineering, athletics has been an important part of Caden’s life. After competing in track and field throughout high school, where he served as a team captain and set school records in the high jump and javelin, he has continued to stay involved in athletics at UMass Lowell through intramural sports while balancing his academic and professional commitments.
Through the Shah Academy of Innovation and Leadership, Caden hopes to learn from experienced industry leaders and mentors while developing the communication, strategic thinking, and leadership skills needed to complement his technical education. He ultimately hopes to build a career developing complex engineering systems, complex engineering systems, progress into multidisciplinary engineering leadership, and create opportunities for the engineers who follow him.