A Little Bit About Me
I went to La Pine High School, and while it's a perfectly ok school, the focus was more so on trades then it was on going to college. This, among other things, made me not try as hard in school as I could or should have, and so I did not realize my potential. Coming to OIT has made me try much harder, and for me, this is a positive thing. I have realized that I am smart and that I do have a good future ahead of me. This has also motivated me to shoot for the stars. I no longer want to settle for mediocrity; I want to exceed in everything I do. I want to exceed not just for me, my family, my partner, but also for the world. I think it's imperative that I fully utilize my potential to improve the world, and I am so thankful to OIT for helping me do this.
Why I Chose Oregon Tech and My Major
I chose Oregon Tech because my sister and parents went on a tour of it before I was looking for schools. It wasn't the right fit for my sister, but as I would learn upon touring it, it was for me. Admittedly, I chose Civil Engineering because I wanted to be an engineer, but I didn't know what type, and it appeared to be the most accessible. I chose to major in Applied Mathematics because I love math.
My Influential Professors
I have genuinely enjoyed my experience with every professor here at OIT, but those who teach my major specific classes seem to be much more influential to me. These professors are a glimpse at who I could be in the future. In the Civil Engineering classes, these are Professors Yokum and Greer. I find it incredibly impressive how dedicated they are to teaching Freshman about the basics of engineering. They solidified the fact that I want to be a Civil Engineer. Pake Melland, in MATH 321, made me realize that I wanted to pursue a degree in Applied Mathematics as well. Something about his teaching style made me realize how much I love math.
My Greatest Learning Experience At Oregon Tech
In the fall term of this year, I was in PHY 221 taught by Professor Yang. He does not have traditional midterms or finals but rather he has his students do projects. My midterm project was about bowling. It seemed simple, but at the time it was anything but. After 40 hours and a good bit of teaching myself and my group math, we discovered that a bowling ball actually accelerates when going down the lane. This seemed so counterintuitive, and my group and I had figured it out by ourselves. It was a very profound experience.
My Plans After Graduation
As a freshman (almost sophomore), I am not entirely sure which path I want to take after graduating. I am considering either becoming a professional engineer working on projects that are very meaningful to me or pursuing a PhD and going into the research and academia side of things. Both are very tempting, but since I love school so much, I am currently leaning slightly towards pursuing a PhD in a field such as structural engineering. From there, I will perhaps become a professor at a school similar to this.