About
Ruchi Shrestha is a Staff Geotechnical Engineer II at GeoEngineers Inc., based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where she works on transportation, coastal, and industrial infrastructure projects. Her work involves detailed subsurface investigations, laboratory data interpretation, and geotechnical analyses that support the safe and efficient design of foundations, embankments, and coastal systems.
At GeoEngineers, Ruchi coordinates drilling and testing operations, develops geotechnical design profiles, and performs analyses including slope stability, bearing capacity, settlement, pile design, and CPT interpretation. Her experience on coastal and marsh restoration projects has strengthened her interest in the complex interactions between soils, water, and sediment, as well as the growing role of data-driven methods and modeling in understanding these systems.
Ruchi completed her Master of Science in Civil Engineering (Geotechnical Engineering) at Boise State University, where her research focused on Microbial Induced Calcite Precipitation (MICP) as a sustainable soil stabilization technique. She also served as a Teaching Assistant, guiding students in Soil Mechanics, Construction Materials, and Computational Methods.
Before graduate school, she worked as a Civil Engineer at CE Construction Pvt. Ltd. in Kathmandu, Nepal, gaining field and design experience in residential and commercial projects.
Motivated by her academic and professional journey, Ruchi now seeks to pursue doctoral research at the intersection of geotechnical engineering, environmental processes, and computational analysis. She aims to bridge fundamental understanding of soils with emerging modeling approaches to support more resilient and sustainable infrastructure in evolving natural environments.
Education
MSc in Geotechnical Engineering
Boise State University, Boise, ID
GPA: 3.92/4.0
Master's thesis on 'Study of Dry Mixing Method to Apply Microbial-Induced Calcite Precipitation for Soil Treatment'.
BE in Civil Engineering
Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal
GPA: 77.7 %
Numerical Methods, C Programming, Computational Techniques in Civil Engineering, Fluid Mechanics, Hydraulics, Engineering Hydrology, Soil Mechanics, Foundation Engineering, Strength of Material, Engineering Geology, Transportation Engineering.
Experience
Staff Geotechnical Engineer II
GeoEngineers Inc., Baton Rouge, LA
◆ Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD) Projects:
• Perform geotechnical field investigations, including detailed logging of soil borings.
• Perform slope stability and bearing capacity analyses for embankments and bridge foundations.
• Assess subsurface conditions through geotechnical design profiles.
◆ Coastal Protection and Restoration Projects:
• Conduct geotechnical evaluations for coastal restoration like engineering design and analyses of earthen dikes, riprap, marsh creation, sheet pile wall.
• Perform slope stability, bearing capacity, and settlement analyses for coastal features.
• Design and evaluate sheet pile systems for erosion control and soil/water retention.
• Prepare coastal use permit applications and ensure regulatory compliance.
◆ Industrial Projects:
• Perform geotechnical investigations for industrial facilities, roads, and pipelines sites.
• Conduct settlement and bearing capacity analyses for heavy foundations.
• Process raw CPT data and prepare CPT logs for pile design and comparison with boring data.
• Conduct PDA testing for pile installation verification.
• Inspect heavy haul road construction for compliance with geotechnical standards.
◆ Overlapping Work Across All Categories:
• Log soil samples, assign laboratory tests, review laboratory test results and analyze engineering properties.
• Prepare and review boring logs for accurate subsurface characterization.
• Develop geotechnical design profiles (shear strength, moisture, unit weight).
• Prepare detailed technical reports and proposals with geotechnical recommendations.
• Submit one-call notifications for safe excavation and utility coordination.
• Coordinate with the client and field crew and manage the project to ensure quality and timely completion of projects.
Research Assistant
Boise State University, Boise, ID
◆ Dry Mixing MICP Soil Stabilization Research:
• Worked on the dry mixing method of Microbial Induced Calcite Precipitation (MICP) approach for soil stabilization, demonstrating the results compared to the traditional wet mixing MICP method, with direct relevance to pavement construction applications.
Teaching Assistant
Boise State University, Boise, ID
◆ Computational Methods:
• Assisted students with MATLAB programming and numerical analysis, and evaluated lab reports and assignments.
◆ Soil Mechanics:
• Conducted geotechnical laboratory sessions, guided students through standard soil testing procedures, and graded lab reports and coursework.
◆ Construction Materials:
• Led laboratory sessions on concrete and aggregate testing, assisted with hands-on procedures, and evaluated student lab reports.
Awards & Honors
Merit Based Scholarship
Sagarmatha Engineering College
Earned 5 out of 8 merit-based scholarships awarded only to the top-ranked student, achieving 1st position in 5 semesters and 2nd position in the remaining 3 semesters.
Best Project Dipslay in Civil Engineering Exhibition cum Competition 2016
CESS
Awarded the best project display in Civil Engineering Exhibition cum Competition 2016 for building a prototype of Melamchi Water Supply Project of Nepal.
Runner Up: AutoCAD Design Competition
Civil Engineering Department, Sagarmatha Engineering College
1st Runner up in AutoCAD Design Competition 2015, organized by Civil Engineering Department, Sagarmatha Engineering College.