So why Mechanical?

Okay, so when I was a senior in high school, I was so lost. I had no idea what I wanted my college major to be, let alone my career. Plus the fact that I am a very indecisive person didn't help. WPI was actually the only technical school I applied to. All the other schools were liberal arts with a strong science and engineering program. So after visiting many a school, I realized that I didn't need a school with a good History or English program, because I knew I didn't want to go into that. WPI ended up being my choice because it was strong in all science and engineering fields, and that was important to me since I still didn't know what I wanted to major in.

As an incoming Freshman I declared an undecided major. My main reason for being undecided was because I didn't know what the different engineering distinction meant. What exactly was a chemical engineer vs a biomedical engineer? So utilizing the CDC I participated in the Major Selection Program (now called the Major Exploration Series). This helped a TON! I learned about all the majors at WPI and what they meant, what work I could be doing, and how much money I could make :-). By C-Term I was declared a Mechanical Engineering major.

So why did I choose Mechanical? Mainly because I could have a career working on my passion...cars. Ever since I was little I have loved cars, and been fascinated with them. That became a past time between my father and I. So when I eventually realized that I could make a career out of working on the car making process I was all for it! Mechanical engineering had that appeal to me, plus I was a fan of physics in high school, and like learning how things work. So I was all set, a mechanical engineer I was going to be! And to this day I am happy as a soon to be mechanical design engineer.

Interviews?

Hello Everyone,

So, as of right now, I haven't had a recent interview. Actually now that I think about it, the last interview I had was with United Technologies - Pratt and Whitney Division back in November right in the WPI CDC. That interview was fruitful, and I am still in contact with the HR contact working out possible details of this summer. Other than that, I am waiting on "call backs" for other interviews with the many companies I have applied to. Keep your fingers crossed for me! :-)

But I have gone on plenty of interviews in the past. And my A number 1 advice to you is to KNOW WHAT IS ON YOUR RESUME! Because that is usually what your interviewer is going off of, and that is probably what you are going to be talking about. So make sure you don't lie on your resume (but I know you wouldn't do that!), and be prepared to expand on everything that you put on your resume. The more you can talk about your skills, involvement, projects, jobs, etc the better. The key is to be passionate!

Also come prepared with questions. And you can usually get question by researching the company and their policies or procedures. So if you have specific questions about the Intern Program housing...ask! Or if you're more concerned about their Graduate reimbursement program...ask! I have always had positive feedback on my questions, and if anything they were impressed with the questions. So don't be shy!

So good luck to you and your intreview process, and I will keep you updated about mine! Peace

Post Career Fair...Now What?!

Hello Everyone! So as I write this I am also following up with all the companies I talked to at the Career Fair. That includes e-mailing the Representatives I spoke with or applying on-line; whatever is the appropriate next steps. (I made sure to take note of this during the Fair so I wouldn't forget!) So far I feel pretty confident, and can't wait to hear back from the companies!

I think one reason why I am confident about a "call back" is because I was confident during the Fair. Having attended CDC workshops and getting my Resume critiqued, I felt fully prepared by the time the Fair rolled around. So I went in knowing I had everything in order, and all I had to do was portray my confidence.

Looking back at other Career Fairs, I think my confidence has improved. As a Freshman I always went in with a level of confidence, but also with doubt since I was just a Freshman. But now as a Junior I can honestly say I went into the Career Fair with nothing but confidence. I have WPI coursework and previous Internships to back me up, and prior Career Fairs under my belt. So as time continues to move forward, my changes seem to be improving!

I will keep you updated on my job search!

Upcoming Spring Career Fair!

Hello everyone and welcome to my Blog! This is my first time blogging ever, so please read with an open mind :-). I hope you enjoy and learn something every now and then.

Okay, so the WPI Spring Career Fair is February 4th and 5th...next week! Ahh! I definitely need an Internship for this summer, so I have to take full advantage of all the companies coming to campus. I need to be prepared beyond prepared! How will I accomplish this? Well first off, starting to prepare NOW! Not next Tuesday like in the past (bad decision let me tell you). So

1. Start re-critiquing my resume

I have gotten my resume looked at countless time, but it is always a work in progress. Between the progression of my WPI projects, courses I am taking, clubs I am involved in, my resume is always changing slightly. So between the drop-off box in the CDC and Resumazing (on Thursday 2/29) I think my resume should be bulletproof! (Lets keep our fingers crossed anyway)

2. Attending CDC events that help prepare students for the Fair

So the CDC always has something going on that can help me present myself better, particularly at the Career Fair. Like tonight, I am going to EMC's workshop "How to work a Career Fair". I'm hoping to gain a companies insight on what they are looking for in a student, that way I can exemplify that next week (and get and internship!)

3. Research, Research, Research!

I've always had the best response from companies that I actually knew about before hand. So when I come up to their table, and can say what program interests me in their company, they really pay attention to me and take more of an interest. So, I plan to go into my Job Finder account and search for the companies that are coming to the Career Fair that would be interested in me. Example, companies looking for Mechanical Engineering Interns. Then once I get that list, do some background research on each company and a) see if they are of interest to me, and b) get an idea of how their internship program works and the possible projects I'd be working on.

So between these three steps, I think/hope I will have a successful job search at the Career Fair. As long as I stick to my plan and don't procrastinate, I should be all types of prepared! Look out world, I'm getting a job!