Monday, August 31, 2009

I love it when technology fails... at a tech school

Ok, well maybe not all technology, just that relating to me. Recently my computer died (big surprise if you happen to know my luck) and took along with it my most recent resume, which I happened to like quite a bit. I checked through every possible place I could have saved it in addition to my computer (because I tend to be paranoid about such things, with good reason) and could only find one from late January on my toaster drive. I guess it's better than nothing, and resume critiques are super easy to get, especially where I've still got a lot of time before the fall career fair. I think I'll try to make it to a walk in meeting with a counselor sometime this week. In case you didn't know Walk-In appointments are every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 1-3pm and generally last for 15 minutes. They give you an opportunity to ask just one major question (have your resume critiqued or a cover letter read over). This is perfect for me, because I still can't remember what on earth my schedule looks like for this term yet, so I'll stop by when I have some free time. Even though I blame my computer, it's a great idea to get your resume looked at minimally once a year, but I aim for twice, once in the fall and once in the spring (right before the major career fairs). Things change, maybe you got promoted, learned a new skill, took a useful course or gained a position in a club on campus and the counselors will be able to help you highlight everything you've done. Also, I'm hoping to get my resume checked before RESUMAZING which is Thursday, September 17th from 1-7 pm in the Odeum. Resumazing is a great event because recruiters from various companies will look over your resume with you and give you an idea of what it tells them. These are the people who review resumes for candidates at positions with their company, so I find their input extremely valuable in addition to the counselors' input. I'll give you all an update on how both critiques go, as I'm sure there will be all kinds of things I'll find out :-). Hope you're all having a great A-Term so far!!

Thursday, August 27, 2009

Half Way Through Already?? I just got here!!!!!

I know when I last blogged, I had talked about starting my IQP and I am SUPER PLEASED to report that it is officially OVER!!!! While just about every day brought a new gigantous disaster, we made it through the project and bettered the school a little as a result. The best part? I can focus on classes and MQP shenanigans this year, which make all the trouble we faced during the project worth it.

Today marked the start of not only the second half of my college career, but also the first term where I have taken strictly engineering courses. I don't really know how I feel about that just yet, so I'll get back to you on that as the term gets on. In some ways I guess it's a good thing, fully submersing myself into my field. It gives me the opportunity to see if it's really what I want to do with my life, and hopefully guide me to figure out what on earth I should choose for a concentration. It's also pretty strange that the last two terms at WPI have been project terms for me, so this is my first time having a full course load since C-Term. We'll see how it all works out but so far I think my professors will be pretty awesome!

After two years at WPI, most of which has been spent as a Mechanical Engineering student, I finally checked out the Career Development Center's Major Binders, and all I can say is I am so mad at myself for not reading through it earlier. I mean we all know what the majors here are, but what they mean you'll actually be doing outside of college? Well that's another story all together. Do mechanical engineers sit at a desk checking equations or at a machine fabricating parts or at a table brainstorming with others? It's all in the binder, who knew. I would highly recommend that all students, especially those who like me might be wondering "But what will I do?" should take some time to visit the CDC and read through their major binder, because even if it doesn't answer all of your questions I can guarantee you'll learn something new.