Directions: Please answer the following questions, and submit them to the blog.
Due Date: The day after your block presentation by 8:00 A.M.
(1) Positive Statement
What are you most proud of in your block presentation and/or your senior project? Why?
There are many things that pleased me about my block presentation. However, I am most proud of the fact that I was able to effectively teach a mathematical concept to my audience. According to my Advisory House teacher, "... if you can can get us to do this [activity] and understand it, you get a standing ovation..." If her enthusiasm and eagerness to try my activity was an indicator that my activity was engaging, then I hope that means I'm in the clear for that section of my Component Contract. The feedback from the audience about my activity was quite positive as well.
As far as my senior project goes, I am most proud of the scope of work I was able to accomplish over this past year. If I had a time machine to go back one year ago, my former self would have deemed a project like this impossible. Now, after countless hours of research and drafting, I am much more confident of my abilities as a drafter, researcher, and a working individual in not only the electrical engineering field but as an iPoly student as well. My mentorship at BERG Power Engineers in West Covina, CA was an amazing experience for me. My mentor, Allen Barreno taught me so much about the essence of electrical engineering as a discipline and provided me with a plethora of resources to expand my educational horizons through interviews, seminars, and Computer-Aided Drafting and Design. I also really enjoyed the opportunity to talk with a number of electrical engineering professionals during my second Independent Component. They provided me with so much insight into the field of power engineering as a whole and guided me in the attainment of my second and third answers for my EQ.
(2) Questions to Consider
a. What assessment would you give yourself on your block presentation (self-assessment)?
AE P AP CR NC
b. What assessment would you give yourself on your overall senior project (self-assessment)?
AE P AP CR NC
(3) What worked for you in your senior project?
What really worked for me is that I was able to integrate many real life examples and applications into my lecture content.
Also, my activity was executed in an engaging way.
Lastly, I really enjoyed the opportunity to engage in a small Q&A session with my audience at the end of my presentation.
(4) (What didn't work) If you had a time machine, what would you have done differently to improve your senior project if you could go back in time?
If I had a time machine, I would have gone back to cite more published sources while I was presenting my three answers.
(5) Finding Value
How has the senior project been helpful to you in your future endeavors? Be specific and use examples.
In many ways, this project has not only shaped who I am, but who I want to be as well. At the beginning of my senior year, I thought I was absolutely sure that I wanted to pursue a career as an electrical engineer at Caltrans. One year later, my career goals are still the same. However, the latter potion has had some unprecedented changes. Now, I would definitely consider Caltrans as an option but over the past year I have come to realize that nothing is stopping me from pursuing a job at a different company. Now, I want to broaden my horizons by exploring internship opportunities at not only power companies, but also engineering firms in my area. The reason I decided to expand my career opportunities is because of man named Kirby.
When I attended a power engineering seminar this past March, I was exposed to a number of different professionals in my senior topic. Some of these engineers had been in the field for 30+ years, so their knowledge and experience had a significant effect on me. One of these engineers went by the name of Kirby. What made Kirby different from the rest of the engineers was that he happened to be close friends with my mentor's dad. When we were at the seminar, Kirby gave me some very valuable advice: Don't let the place you want to work at limit your educational goals. If you let your educational goals and your thirst for knowledge drive your career, then people will notice and job opportunities will follow right after. College for engineers isn't so much about teaching you the theory of your field of study. But teaching you how to be a better learner; in power engineering, [and to a certain extent, every branch of engineering], you're going to encounter many problems, most of which you will have never seen before. College for engineers is a series of mind-bending problems, practical solutions, and applications of those solutions in everyday life. The goal of college isn't to teach you how to regurgitate information from a textbook, but how to be resilient enough to apply what you learned to solve every problem you come in contact with.
I plan to keep this bit of insight in my mind as I pursue my degree in electrical engineering and as I begin the process of attaining an internship at Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories (SEL) this summer.
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