Year 3 Review

        Growing up in a household with two older brothers, sports were an integral part of my life from the beginning. My family loved attending any game of any kind that we could, played a variety of sports from a young age, and watched tons of old sports movies. Quotes from these movies and from some of sports’ most influential players were ingrained in my mind for as long as I can remember. Throughout my life, I can see how each one has been part of my story. This year, Wayne Gretzky took center stage with his quote shown above.

        This year allowed me to grow in many ways, but the most evident was in my willingness to take risks. I have never been a risk-taker, often preferring to carefully consider every option and taking the path of least resistance. However, many of the incredible opportunities that have come about this year because I let go of my worries and took my shot.

        This past fall, I flew to Orlando, Florida for the 2022 Grace Hopper Celebration. I was extremely nervous since I rarely travel (first time flying solo!) and I am not a computer science major. I deliberated for quite some time whether I would attend once I was made aware of the opportunity, but I kept coming back to this idea of taking my shot and not looking back. I was amazed at the conference and left feeling more empowered in my journey of finding my place in the medical technology space. Through networking with individuals at the event, I was offered a position as an information and digital solutions co-op, which I accepted and will be completing this summer. I would not have these new connections and opportunities without the support of ACM-W who organized the trip and without taking this risk.

        Additionally, I switched my master’s degree from biomedical engineering to mechanical engineering. This may not sound like much, but it was a tough decision that took risks to figure out. Co-oping has provided invaluable experiences to get to know the industry I hope to join one day and to find my place within it. I have worked in R&D and quality so far and have met individuals with a variety of backgrounds. Halfway through my co-op this fall, I realized that the work that had fulfilled me most was mechanical in nature, and I desired to learn more about these areas. I took the risk of reaching out to some full-time workers at my workplace and having real conversations about where I saw myself in the future and what I needed to do to achieve that. I began planning the logistics of making the switch and after having more conversations with my family determined the switch was the right way to go. Since changing to mechanical engineering, I have taken classes that pushed me and prepared me for my future career, including quality control and design for manufacturability and assembly. This would not have been possible without trusting myself and taking a leap of faith.

        There are countless other “shots” I have taken this past year, including stepping up to take more meaningful roles in the organizations that give me purpose, participating in an external advisory board meeting for my department, and much more. I have grown in confidence and boldness in pursuing what matters most to me. I have found a support network of individuals who will continue to push me in this growth. Not every shot lands in the goal, but the ones that do bring about opportunities that cannot be replaced.