课外活动有助于研究生的成功

Whether she’s helping to develop self-driving vehicles or creating complicated software programs to improve communication, honors alum 莎拉Agnalt ’18 helps enable soldiers on the field to do their jobs every day. Since graduating, the electrical engineering alum has been working at 通用动力公司, 一个全球性的航空航天和国防公司, 作为开发团队的一员与军方建立联系.

While working with software and 学习 how to program using MATLAB in her rigorous engineering classes at RWU gave her the technical skills she needed, she credits her extracurricular involvement for giving her the tools she needed to succeed post-graduation. Agnalt说 her participation in faculty research and RWU's chapter of the Society of Women Engineers gave her hands-on preparation for the engineering industry.

The Society of Women Engineers allowed Agnalt to hold an executive position as a freshman, lead a 女童子军工作坊 在物理和参加区域和国家会议. Through these conferences she met many professionals in the engineering industry, 让她找到了一份实习工作 雷神公司, which allowed her to develop an interest in working within the defense industry.

“Getting this job [at 通用动力公司] wouldn’t have been possible with the Society of Women Engineers,阿格纳尔说. “俱乐部让我建立了关系网, meet people at the company and get to know the company to really figure out where I fit in.”

When Agnalt was approached with an opportunity to help develop an autonomous vehicle at 通用动力公司, 她知道自己来对地方了. She was able to draw from a previous research project where she assisted former professor of engineering Benjamin McPheron in designing an autonomous vehicle that could navigate successfully through an obstacle course for a senior design project.

However, it wasn’t just the engineering coursework that helped Agnalt enter the real world. 作为RWU的成员 荣誉项目在美国，她与不同专业的学生合作，分享想法. 通过这个项目, 学生们不只是看他们在自己的领域里做了什么, but also how they are affecting others in the community and world around them.

为了她荣誉的毕业项目, she developed an air pollution monitoring device that would take measurements of the air quality around you. Her engineering background allowed her to consider the technical aspects of how the machine would work and how it would be built. But it was through the Honors program that made her think about and question who would be using it, why and when would they use it and whether or not they could they afford it.

“Honors would take what you were doing in your major and make you think harder about the outside world and how you’re connecting with people physically,阿格纳尔说. “It’s not just developing an air pollution detector – you’re developing something that could really affect other people’s lives.”

These Honors program components are reflected in Agnalt’s ability to collaborate with her development team to create programs that will best benefit the military personnel when they are out in the field.

学习你所在领域的技术技能很重要, 但是大学不仅仅是你的学习, Agnalt说. It was from getting involved and thinking beyond the scope of her classes that allowed Agnalt to experience the impact of the engineering field before graduating.

“Take advantage of the different clubs and opportunities outside the classes,阿格纳尔建议即将网赌的十大网站的学生. “虽然课程很棒, it was because of the Society of Women Engineers and other clubs I was a part of that really shaped me and my passion for engineering. 它帮助我看清了自己和我作为工程师的职业生涯.”