Oluwami Dosunmu-Ogunbi Makes History as First Black Woman to Earn PhD in Robotics
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Nigerian-American engineer Oluwami Dosunmu-Ogunbi has made history as the first Black woman to earn a PhD in Robotics from the University of Michigan in the United States. She completed her doctorate in May 2024 after developing a new stair-climbing controller for bipedal walking robots.
Dr Oluwami Dosunmu-Ogunbi specialises in dynamics and controls, with research interests in robotic bipedal locomotion and engineering education. Her chief doctoral result was a new stair-climbing controller for bipedal walking robots, and she also performed the first demonstration of a bipedal robot stepping onto, riding, and stepping off a moving walkway.
She spoke at the university’s College of Engineering convocation, where she reflected on the community of mentors and advocates who made the milestone possible.
“I do not stand here on my own two feet alone. None of us got here by our individual merit alone; whether it be teachers, friends, family, mentors, or role models, we each have one or multiple people to whom we are grateful for making this moment possible.”
Oluwami Dosunmu-Ogunbi, known as Wami, is the daughter of Nigerian immigrant parents. She first attempted her PhD in 2020, the year the COVID-19 pandemic began, but the journey hit a snag that stalled her for a period before she returned, determined to see her dream through.
Her path to robotics was not one she had mapped out as a child. As the daughter of Nigerian immigrants, she felt her options were limited to three careers: law, medicine, or engineering. By process of elimination, she chose engineering.
“I can’t be a doctor, because I hate blood. Lawyer is out because I would pass out if I ever had to talk in front of a large crowd. So I guess that leaves engineer.” It was, however, a hexagonal velvet beret worn by doctoral graduates that first made her fixated on earning a doctorate in high school.
Dr Oluwami Dosunmu-Ogunbi now serves as an Assistant Professor at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, where she continues her research in bipedal locomotion and engineering education.
