Akshita Vashisht
Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering
About Me
Grounded in curiosity. Driven by purpose.
I'm Akshita — a high school student with a deep passion for mechanical and aerospace engineering. I'm drawn to the way engineering asks you to understand a system completely before you can improve it, and I love the intersection of rigorous technical thinking and creative problem-solving.
My path has been anything but linear. I've published aerospace AI research at IEEE NAECON on interpreting aerial drone imagery, directed a documentary screened at 60 festivals across 18 countries, winning 17 awards along the way, led the construction of a water well for a village of 500 residents in India's Thar Desert — saving an estimated 146,000 hours a year once spent carrying water — and earned the President's Volunteer Service Award. Through STEP, I've also been selected twice to represent the club at the United Nations.
What ties it all together is a genuine belief that the most meaningful work happens when you bring your whole self to it — technical rigor, creative instinct, and a real stake in the outcome.
Published Researcher
- •Presented aerospace AI research at IEEE NAECON
- •Zero-shot evaluation of SAM 3 on drone imagery
- •Found that it doesn't segment objects well when viewed from above
Award-Winning Filmmaker
- •60 festival selections across 18 countries
- •17 awards won
- •Screened at AMC Times Square (All American High School Film Festival)
Humanitarian Founder
- •Built a water well for a village of 500 residents in India's Thar Desert
- •Created opportunities for women and children for better education, health and hygiene
- •Founded Ripple of Hope Foundation, now installing hand pumps across India, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka
Community Leader
- •Chief Editor of monthly newsletter for STEP (Lions Club)
- •Selected twice to represent STEP at the United Nations
- •Project Lead — Toys for Tots, collected record 800 toys in a week
Technical Experience
- •Diagnostics & customer intake — City Auto Center (2026)
- •Web design & build, pro bono - Sona Spa & Salon (2023)
Artistic Thinker
- •13+ years of formal visual arts training
- •Saxophone Ensemble, Youth Orchestra of Central Jersey (YOCJ)
- •Storytelling through visual media
Independent Learning
- •Advanced Space Academy — U.S. Space & Rocket Center, Huntsville (2025)
- •Columbia Pre-College — Data Science & Machine Learning (2025); the coursework behind the SAM 3 evaluation presented at IEEE NAECON
Teaching & Mentorship
- •Certified SAT tutor through College Board's peer-tutoring program in partnership with Schoolhouse.world — sustained prep for students
- •Volunteer coach and mentor, Special Olympics & Expressive Arts
Projects & Portfolio
Impact and Outcomes
Paani — Award-Winning Short Film
Set in rural India's Thar Desert, Paani — meaning "water" in Hindi — follows families living with severe water scarcity and the hope emerges when engineers drill nearly 500 feet underground to reach drinkable groundwater. A story of resilience, survival, and the value of a single drop.
- 60 festival selections across 18 countries
- 17 awards across 4 countries
What Happens When AI Looks Down?
Ran a zero-shot evaluation of SAM 3 on aerial drone imagery across two benchmarks (VisDrone, Semantic Drone), testing whether a model trained on ground-level photos generalizes overhead with no fine-tuning. It doesn't: recall fell to roughly half of precision — systematic over-segmentation traced to prompt grounding, not image quality — and one category collapsed to near-zero accuracy. Published at IEEE NAECON 2026; invited to present the poster.
- Zero-shot evaluation across two aerial benchmarks
- Recall ~2x below precision — a prompt-grounding failure, not image quality
- One category collapsed to near-zero accuracy
Project Oasis & Ripple of Hope Foundation
Founded Project Oasis to bring clean water to a drought-affected community in India's Thar Desert, leading the project from fundraising and site planning through well construction. The work grew into Ripple of Hope Foundation, a New Jersey nonprofit now extending water access to communities across India, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka.
- Built a well serving 500 residents in India's Thar Desert
- Freed an estimated 146,000 hours a year previously spent carrying water
- Founded Ripple of Hope Foundation, now installing hand pumps across India, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka
STEP Toys for Tots Project Lead
Led STEP's Toys for Tots holiday drive, coordinating community outreach that collected 800 toys in one week — a club record, confirmed by STEP's leadership. Organized the toy packing and led the drop-off at the US Marine Corps base in New Jersey.
- Collected 800 toys in one week — a STEP club record, confirmed by club leadership
- Organized packing and led the drop-off at the US Marine Corps base, NJ
Extracurriculars & Activities
Beyond the classroom
STEP (Lions Club International)
Active Member & Volunteer 2023 - present
Selected by STEP to represent the club at United Nations Headquarters in New York City in both 2024 and 2026. Served as Chief Editor of STEP's monthly newsletter for one year, and as a volunteer coach and mentor with Special Olympics and Expressive Arts, working with kids and teens with special abilities. Also took part in STEP's major service drives throughout the year, including Rise Against Hunger, the Back to School Drive, and menstrual health and diaper drives.
Visual Arts
Student — Art Academy of Highland Park 2013 - present
Joined the Art Academy of Highland Park at age 4 — its youngest student ever — and has spent the following fourteen years building a disciplined creative practice across drawing, painting, and mixed media. The piece shown above is a hand-drawn "mirror image," rendered in charcoal to match a 50% printed reference. Recognized with the Silver Dedication Award from West Windsor Arts.
Diagnostics support and Customer Intake
City Auto Center, Hightstown NJ July 2026 - present
Started full-time over summer 2026, now weekends during the school year. At this small shop, roles blur — diagnostics with scan tools, fault codes, customer intake, and whatever else the day needs. The lesson that stuck: a fault code narrows down which system is unhappy, but finding the actual cause takes testing, questions, and ruling out two or three possibilities first.
Performing Arts — Music
Saxophonist & Ensemble Performer 2019 - present
Playing Alto saxophone since 2019, and Baritone saxophone since 2022 at the request of the school's Music Department. Member of the school Jazz Band and, since 2022, the selective Youth Orchestra of Central Jersey (YOCJ). Performed internationally in Vienna and Salzburg, Austria — pictured above in a lighthearted moment with fellow musicians during a Salzburg concert rehearsal.
Awards & Honors
Recognition
Published Researcher — IEEE NAECON 2026
IEEE National Aerospace and Electronics Conference
Research paper "What Happens When AI Looks Down?" accepted and published. Invited to present the poster at the conference.
Best Film — Water Stories: Youth Film Showcase
NYU Steinhardt / NYC Department of Cultural Affairs
Paani recognized as Best Film at the Water Stories: Youth Film Showcase, a juried competition presented by NYU Steinhardt and NYC Cultural Affairs.
Audience Choice Award — Climate Changemaker Teen Film Festival
Climate Changemaker Teen Film Festival
Paani received the Audience Choice Award, selected by festival attendees from among entries addressing climate and environmental themes.
Long Island International Film Expo - Jury Award for Student awareness
Breakfast panel
Special recognition for film "Paani" and I was invited to the breakfast panel to discuss about my film
Lions Day with the United Nations
Lions Club International / United Nations
Selected to represent Lions Club at Lions Day with the United Nations at UN Headquarters in New York City.
National Recognition Program
Collegeboard
Recognized for outstanding academic achievement in SAT exam
President's Volunteer Service Award
Office of the President of the United States
Awarded by the President of the United States for sustained, high-impact volunteer service.
Lions Club Melvin Jones Fellowship
Lions Club International
Awarded for exceptional fundraising contributions through Lions Club International initiatives.
West Windsor Arts Council Silver Award
West Windsor Arts Council
Recognized for outstanding volunteer contributions to the arts community in West Windsor, NJ.
National German Exam Silver Award
American Association of Teachers of German
Awarded a Silver distinction on the National German Exam, recognizing excellence in German language proficiency.
NJ State General Assembly Citation
New Jersey State General Assembly
Cited by the New Jersey State General Assembly for outstanding community contributions and service.
World Peace and Environmental Stewardship
Lions Club International
Recognized for contributions to humanitarian work and environmental stewardship initiatives.
Shining Star Volunteer
Plainsboro Township Department of Recreation and Community Services
Named a Shining Star Volunteer by the Plainsboro Township Department of Recreation and Community Services for exceptional dedication in community service.
Best Documentary — Bergen International Film Festival
Bergen International Film Festival of New Jersey
Paani won Best Documentary, competing against entries across all age groups.
Get in Touch
Let's connect
Whether you're an admissions officer, a collaborator, or someone who just wants to talk about aerospace, engineering, or film — I'd love to hear from you.