As he completes his master’s degree in aerospace technology, Cain wants to create lasting value in his job and his spiritual life.
Even in sixth grade, Will Cain (WC ’21) had an interest in science that surpassed his peers.
“What I remember about Will is he loved learning, not just science, but he loved learning in general,” said former Worthington Christian Middle School science teacher Ruth Beschta, Cain’s sixth-grade science teacher. “He went beyond what he had to learn, and he really sought to understand and to make connections to apply it. It’s just fun teaching someone who connects with the course material like he did.”
Four years after graduating from Worthington Christian, Cain is still seeking ways to apply his knowledge in science. The mechanical engineering student was among five University of Cincinnati students selected for the Armstrong Institute for Space, Technology and Research (ASTRO) Fellowship for Exploration. The fellowship is designed for graduates with a grade point average of 3.0 or higher and have completed at least one year of a master’s or Ph.D. program in any discipline.
Cain earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering last spring and hopes to complete his master’s degree in aerospace engineering by next spring. The Worthington Christian graduate has been enrolled in UC’s Ascend Program, which allows students to begin working on their master’s while still earning their undergraduate degree.
Cain credits Beschta for helping him get on the right path in science.
“Honestly, I’d say I got a good understanding of physics from Ms. Beschta,” Cain said, “She really gave me a love for science and the way the world works. She was awesome.
“To be good at mechanical engineering, you need to have a good understanding of physics and the way the world works. Outside of that, you need to be able to solve problems by breaking a bigger problem down into smaller steps you can tackle. I’m a teaching assistant for a thermodynamics class. They’re learning about a process that might seem redundant or pointless, but breaking down a problem into simple steps makes it easier to solve. That’s where the understanding of physics comes in. Do you understand how the math applies to the world?”
Cain took full advantage of Ohio’s dual enrollment program, which allows students to earn college credit while still in high school. He earned enough course credits while at Worthington Christian to trim an entire year off the time required to complete his undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering.
The mechanical engineering program at the University of Cincinnati typically takes five years to complete because students are asked to participate in five cooperative education opportunities (co-ops) with various companies related to their field, such as Apple, Ethicon Endo-Surgery, GE Aviation, L’Oréal, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble, Siemens, and Tesla.
The co-op program allows students to alternate semesters in the classroom with the experience of working a full-time job in their major. Students work a 35-plus-hour week at a company for a semester (15-18 weeks) and earn up to $61,000 on average, which is applied to their tuition. The cooperative education program allows students to gain 1.5 years of working experience on their post-college resumes while exploring areas of engineering they might be interested in and companies they might like to work for after graduation.
“You get a lot of work experience and that helps offset the cost of college, but it also takes a year longer,” Cain said. “I was able to take a very different path than most classmates. (Because of the college credits I earned at Worthington Christian) I was able to do the co-ops and graduate in four years.”
Working at a research lab at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton cemented Cain’s decision to specialize in aerospace engineering.
“I was interested in aerospace when I was in high school. I considered pursuing a degree in aerospace engineering at UC,” he said. “However, I liked the broadness that mechanical engineering offers. You can work in the aerospace field, but you can also explore many other types of engineering. I tried to use those co-ops to determine if aerospace engineering would be of interest to me. While working at Wright-Patt, I really enjoyed working in that field and decided to pursue a master’s in it.”
Cain worked on the hypersonic propulsion teams, designing engines for vehicles that travel four to fifteen times the speed of sound (4,348 -16,307 feet per second). Traveling at that speed introduces many difficulties in a typical jet engine.
“Hypersonic propulsion is not new per se, but it is on the cutting edge of research science, so it requires a little more specialization,” Cain said. “Some of the external parts under that rate of speed … would fail pretty quickly, so it requires new propulsion methods just to make it work.”
Currently, most hypersonic engines are used for military purposes, but the Fellowship of Exploration is focused on the long-term goal of using them to travel deeper into space. Hypersonic propulsion is air-breathing, which uses the atmosphere rather than an oxidizer to power its flight.
“You need oxygen to burn fuel. A typical rocket carries oxygen on board in a solid state,” Cain said. “Since (hypersonic engines) use the atmosphere, you don’t have to have as much of a load (on board). You can go much higher in altitude at a higher speed while carrying less weight because you don’t have to take an oxidizer. It also makes the rocket more reusable and less expensive.
“It’s a much longer-term goal that will likely occur outside of our lifetimes. But they’ll pay me for it. So that works.”
In that way, Cain draws a parallel between his hypersonic propulsion work and his work as a Christian in the engineering field.
“Yeah, it’s interesting (that I may not see the results of my research), but the work I do as a follower of Jesus has even more of an impact for eternity as people are being brought from death to life,” he said. “My main focus here is being a follower of Jesus on a mission. That’s what He asked us to do in Matthew 28. I don’t know if my work could make life better in … the future if space (travel) is the desire. However, I want to leave an impact by getting as many people to know the love of Jesus as possible.
“I remember a time when three of us were working in a lab office. During that time, there were a lot of street preachers (around UC’s campus). They stopped one of my lab mates and began talking to him. That day, he came into the office and said, ‘I’m confused by what they were talking about.’ We ended up having a really good conversation about what it looks like to follow Jesus.”