Year In Review: 2016 - 2017
Part One: What? So What?
This past year has been yet another exciting and productive one as my academic and professional journeys have continued. I have completed three full coop rotations, two part time work semesters, and am completing my final coop rotation with Setco where I have gained competence in a number of engineering skills. During my third coop rotation in Fall 2016, I returned to work at Setco's headquarters in Cincinnati. Throughout the semester my tasks were similar to my first coop rotation with an increase in emphasis on detailing for new product releases. I strived to gain a deeper understanding of the reasoning behind drafting/tolerancing standards, and I believe that significant progress was made in my development. This development will allow me to be more effective as an engineer in the machine tool industry as I will possess an appreciation for the reasoning behind certain designs and practices. A noteable side project that I worked on was a repeat job process documentation manual which aims to improve longterm efficiency and consistency within the engineering department for repeated products. This project required me to work effectively with members of the engineering department to consolidate and describe acceptable standard processes which further developed my non-technical teamwork and communication skills. Although only about a month into my final coop rotation with Setco, I am continuing to compound on the development that occurred in my third rotation. I am working in the applications engineering department which has giving me more design freedom, engagement with vendors and customers, and allowing me to participate in the more general product design. Academically, I am still performing up to my personal expectations and the course content has remained interesting with connections to my overall passions. Specifically, Machine Design (Summer 2016), Fluid Mechanics (Summer 2016), and Statistics (Spring 2017) had final projects that served as exciting culminations of the learning that occurred during the semester (see my “General Involvement” tab for more information). The primary outcome of these projects was that I gained confidence in my overall engineering ability in relation to real world problems. Concerning my general academic plan, I changed my mind on pursuing minors in Management and Robotics/Automation and will instead only be pursuing a minor in Management. I made this decision as I will still be a well-rounded engineering prospect without the Robotics/Automation minor, but the additional time gained will allow me to more deeply engage with my other commitments. Socially, I have remained engaged with the community through a number of volunteering activities. My service over the past year has primarily been centered around environmental cleanup through events with Imago and the Evanston Recreation Center. I have enjoyed these opportunities and will continue to seek this type of service when it is available. Personally, the largest development over the past year has come from my engagement with the Engineering Diplomats, an organization that seeks to create positive interactions from the arrival of JCI students from CEAS’ partner university in Chongqing, China (for more on the Engineering Diplomats please see the various relevant tabs under the “Honors Experiences” tab). This opportunity has shown me that I have the potential to become far more than just an engineer from the event planning, organizational development, and personal interactions that I have completed through the events and programs hosted. Similar to last year, I would not change anything about my journey this past year as I have exceeded my own expectations for where I would be entering my senior year. However, I would take the opportunity to do it all again for the fun of it!
Part Two: Now What?
My main focus in my senior year is accomplishing the ultimate goal I entered college with: graduate with a job in the field of engineering. In order to accomplish this goal I am going to need to spend the time to do research on companies and available positions, apply to multiple organizations to keep as many options on the table as possible, have confidence in any interviews due to the experiences I have compiled during my time at UC, and make a decision that will get me excited about the next phase of my life. My advice to myself is to continue following what has been working. I have established a plan for success throughout my college career, and I am at the point where I simply need to stay focused in order to finish strong. As stated previously, I believe my change in my minor pursuit plans will allow me to get more out of my final year by providing me more time to engage in my other enrolled courses as well as my other commitments such as the Engineering Diplomats. The Engineering Diplomats will be the largest portion of my legacy at UC so I intend on spending a great deal of time ensuring that the new organizational members feel welcomed and thrive as the organization expands its members and programming. I am pleased with the opportunities I have found throughout my time at UC thus far and am ready for the excitement that will surround my senior year.
This past year has been yet another exciting and productive one as my academic and professional journeys have continued. I have completed three full coop rotations, two part time work semesters, and am completing my final coop rotation with Setco where I have gained competence in a number of engineering skills. During my third coop rotation in Fall 2016, I returned to work at Setco's headquarters in Cincinnati. Throughout the semester my tasks were similar to my first coop rotation with an increase in emphasis on detailing for new product releases. I strived to gain a deeper understanding of the reasoning behind drafting/tolerancing standards, and I believe that significant progress was made in my development. This development will allow me to be more effective as an engineer in the machine tool industry as I will possess an appreciation for the reasoning behind certain designs and practices. A noteable side project that I worked on was a repeat job process documentation manual which aims to improve longterm efficiency and consistency within the engineering department for repeated products. This project required me to work effectively with members of the engineering department to consolidate and describe acceptable standard processes which further developed my non-technical teamwork and communication skills. Although only about a month into my final coop rotation with Setco, I am continuing to compound on the development that occurred in my third rotation. I am working in the applications engineering department which has giving me more design freedom, engagement with vendors and customers, and allowing me to participate in the more general product design. Academically, I am still performing up to my personal expectations and the course content has remained interesting with connections to my overall passions. Specifically, Machine Design (Summer 2016), Fluid Mechanics (Summer 2016), and Statistics (Spring 2017) had final projects that served as exciting culminations of the learning that occurred during the semester (see my “General Involvement” tab for more information). The primary outcome of these projects was that I gained confidence in my overall engineering ability in relation to real world problems. Concerning my general academic plan, I changed my mind on pursuing minors in Management and Robotics/Automation and will instead only be pursuing a minor in Management. I made this decision as I will still be a well-rounded engineering prospect without the Robotics/Automation minor, but the additional time gained will allow me to more deeply engage with my other commitments. Socially, I have remained engaged with the community through a number of volunteering activities. My service over the past year has primarily been centered around environmental cleanup through events with Imago and the Evanston Recreation Center. I have enjoyed these opportunities and will continue to seek this type of service when it is available. Personally, the largest development over the past year has come from my engagement with the Engineering Diplomats, an organization that seeks to create positive interactions from the arrival of JCI students from CEAS’ partner university in Chongqing, China (for more on the Engineering Diplomats please see the various relevant tabs under the “Honors Experiences” tab). This opportunity has shown me that I have the potential to become far more than just an engineer from the event planning, organizational development, and personal interactions that I have completed through the events and programs hosted. Similar to last year, I would not change anything about my journey this past year as I have exceeded my own expectations for where I would be entering my senior year. However, I would take the opportunity to do it all again for the fun of it!
Part Two: Now What?
My main focus in my senior year is accomplishing the ultimate goal I entered college with: graduate with a job in the field of engineering. In order to accomplish this goal I am going to need to spend the time to do research on companies and available positions, apply to multiple organizations to keep as many options on the table as possible, have confidence in any interviews due to the experiences I have compiled during my time at UC, and make a decision that will get me excited about the next phase of my life. My advice to myself is to continue following what has been working. I have established a plan for success throughout my college career, and I am at the point where I simply need to stay focused in order to finish strong. As stated previously, I believe my change in my minor pursuit plans will allow me to get more out of my final year by providing me more time to engage in my other enrolled courses as well as my other commitments such as the Engineering Diplomats. The Engineering Diplomats will be the largest portion of my legacy at UC so I intend on spending a great deal of time ensuring that the new organizational members feel welcomed and thrive as the organization expands its members and programming. I am pleased with the opportunities I have found throughout my time at UC thus far and am ready for the excitement that will surround my senior year.