Auto industry inspires mechanical engineering student

Patrick Draper is driven by a love of the automotive industry. It’s what led the Lexington, Ky, native to study mechanical engineering and why he opted to do all of his cooperative education (co-op) rotations at Valvoline.

Draper, who will graduate from the University of Cincinnati in 2021, was selected as the Undergraduate Engineer of the Month by UC’s College of Engineering and Applied Science (CEAS). 

Like so many CEAS students, Draper chose UC because of the positive comments he had heard about co-op, which incorporates paid industry work experience into the curriculum. 

“I thought co-op work experience would be important not only to verify my choice in mechanical engineering but also to get a head start on a career in industry,” Draper said. “There are so many diverse applications for mechanical engineering which were unknown to me before co-op.”

Draper’s co-ops at Valvoline Engine Laboratory in Ashland, Kentucky, offered broad opportunities working on a range of unique projects that required different skills and presented new challenges. Throughout his time at Valvoline, Draper worked on lubricant-related vehicle and engine tests, helped to build a custom electric vehicle, conducted tests to validate a new motor oil, assembled and disassembled test engines, and other projects. He even appears in a Valvoline television commercial (see below).