Chloe Pinkston, an aerospace engineering student on the pre-medical track, is poised to make significant contributions to the emerging field of aerospace medicine.
A native of Oviedo, Florida, Chloe’s journey at the University of Central Florida reflects an exceptional blend of academic rigor, groundbreaking research and a passion for innovation.
“Even though it is such a big school, I was able to find my place at UCF and create my own unique path,” says Pinkston, who has enjoyed finding friends studying a variety of disciplines. “UCF provide so many opportunities for me to do research and get involved in research leadership through the student Undergraduate Research Council.”
Majoring in aerospace engineering with minors in bioengineering and mathematics on the pre-medical track, Pinkston is also a Burnett Honors Scholar. She says it was an opportunity “too good to turn down,” with a Lockheed Martin STEM Scholarship included.
Growing up close to campus, Pinkston says felt a sense of familiarity and community at UCF, making it the ideal place to pursue her aspirations. Her grandparents are UCF alumni, and now, her younger sister is following in Pinkston’s footsteps, studying aerospace engineering too.
While initially focused on medicine, Pinkston’s interests broadened in high school, where she took advanced coursework in biology, chemistry and all three physics AP classes that were offered. This foundation, plus her love of mathematics, sparked her interest in aerospace medicine, which combines her passion for science and her fascination with engineering and exploration. Although she loved the nine-hour-long airplane flights to visit family in France, she also noticed that her body experienced changes afterwards.
“I’m especially interested in the effects of reduced gravity, oxygen and pressure on the human body,” Pinkston says. “I hope to be at the forefront of this research, as well as contribute to the development of technologies that help protect and optimize human health in these conditions.”
Her aerospace medicine background will allow her to better understand, design and test the technical systems impacting human health and position her in a valuable role on interdisciplinary teams, where collaboration between medical and engineering professionals is essential.
Her undergraduate career has been marked by rigorous research and academic achievements, especially in biomedical research, which combines her areas of interest. Pinkston has spent over three years in the assistive device lab at the UCF Academic Health Sciences Campus in Lake Nona, studying the properties of the Achilles tendon, particularly stiffness and energy return during walking. This biomedical research, which began during her first year, has implications for improving mobility and understanding human biomechanics. Currently focused on healthy adults, Pinkston envisions future collaborations with Nemours Children’s Hospital to extend her work to pediatric applications.
Beyond her academic pursuits, Pinkston has been volunteering with organizations like HOPE Helps and Shepherd’s Hope Clinic, where she assists with patient communication and record-keeping.
Reflecting on her decision to study engineering, she attributes her passion to the unique opportunity to blend medicine with cutting-edge technology. She sees aerospace engineering as a pathway to specialize in aerospace medicine, a field that aligns with her dreams of solving complex challenges and improving lives through innovation.
She is part of a group that participated in engineering a Senior Design capstone project, which involved designing, modeling, constructing and flying a remote-controlled unmanned aerial vehicle capable of rapid delivery of emergency supplies that could be marketed as cost effective. This project, operated by a pilot using a remote control that sends a signal to the plane’s receiver and applies the pilot’s input to a motor, shows Pinkston’s engineering expertise and teamwork skills.
At UCF’s 2025 Founders’ Day, Chloe was recognized with the Order of Pegasus award, UCF’s highest honor for students. As graduation nears, she recently defended her honors thesis.
“I’m grateful for my time at UCF, which is a place that nurtured my academic and personal growth. I am excited to start medical school, combining my interests in engineering and healthcare,” she says.
Last year, UCF College of Medicine recruited a vice chair of aerospace medicine, Emmanuel Urquieta, to build a multidisciplinary program in space health. Pinkston says pursuing the program will be a challenge that she looks forward to — especially the integrated sciences courses and opportunities to eventually pursue an aerospace medicine residency or fellowship once she graduates from the medical school.
Pinkston exemplifies the caliber of graduates UCF is proud to send into the world: bright, driven and ready to positively change the world.
