Profiles of Engineers and Engineering Students

1. Profiles of Engineers and Engineering Students

2. Introduction • Brief overview of engineering professionals and students ordered alphabetically • Each engineer addresses 3 areas • Why or how they became an engineer • Their current professional activities • Their life outside of work • More info in text • Search out your own professional engineer and interview him or her!

3. Biomedical Engineer: Sue H. Abreu, Ft. Bragg, NC • Occupation: • Lt. Colonel, Medical Corps, U.S. Army • Medical Director, Quality Assurance, Womack Army Medical Center • Education: • IDE (BSE, Biomedical Engineering), 1978 • MD, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, 1982 Lt.Col. Sue H. Abreu (ret.) http://web.ics.purdue.edu/~omcc/

4. Studying Engineering • Started with teaching classes • Minor in Athletic Training • Studied aeronautical engineering for lightweight artificial limbs and protective equipment • Specialized in nuclear medicine after medical school • Ended up in a field never knew existed • Follow your dreams, find something you love and earn a living doing it • You will be much happier in the end

5. Life Outside of Work • Enjoys skydiving • Volunteers as team doctor for U.S. Parachute Team • Travels world with them • Lives in large house on 6 acres of country land • No children • Dog • Cats U.S. Army Parachute Team www.arnold.af.mil/aedc/highmach/stories/goldenknights.html

6. Sr. Electrical Engineer: Joseph Buffington, Atlanta, Ga. • Occupation: • Draftsman • Test Engineer • Research Engineer • Education: • Georgia Institute of Technology • Southern Polytechnical State University Senior Electrical Engineer(ret.)

7. Studying Engineering • Excelled in Math and Physics • Enrolled at Georgia Tech • Pursued a dual degree in electrical engineering • Work on the electric car while studying engineering • Transferred to Southern Polytechnicaal State University Wanted to learn more about electronics • Continued to work on the electric car • Built my first Ham Radio • Graduated with an Associated Degree in Electronic & Bachelor degree in Electrical Engineering

8. Life Inside/Outside of Work • Hovercraft Racing • Enjoys Playing Piano • Hunting • Fishing • Roller Skating • Playing Ping Pong • Amateur Inventor • Coin Collector • Stamp collector

9. Biomedical Engineer: Sue H. Abreu, Ft. Bragg, NC • Occupation: • Lt. Colonel, Medical Corps, U.S. Army • Medical Director, Quality Assurance, Womack Army Medical Center • Education: • IDE (BSE, Biomedical Engineering), 1978 • MD, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, 1982 Lt.Col. Sue H. Abreu (ret.) http://web.ics.purdue.edu/~omcc/

10. Computer Engineer:Moyosola O. Ajaja, Chandler, AZ • Occupation: • Software Engineer at Intel Corporation • Education: • BS, Computer and Electrical Engineering, 1997 • Career Life • Challenged to learn new things and remain at leading edge of computer technology www.zen26266.zen.co.uk/ Intel.htm

11. Studying Engineering • Excelled in Math and Physics • Enrolled at Purdue University • Pursued a dual degree in computer and electrical engineering (option no longer available) • Wanted to seek fortune and learn more about computers (moved from Lagos, Nigeria) • First year, sought after Internships and Scholarships to fund education • Attended many resume and interview prep shops • Awarded Intel Foundation Scholarship (full ride)

12. Life Outside of Work • Camelback Mountain hike • Loves travel • Fueled by job and school • Interested in Photography, Theology, and dog obedience training • Engineering is a discipline • Qualities of an engineer are apparent in everything she does Camelback Mountain www.nightskyworkshop.com/ june03.htm

13. Aerospace Engineer:Patrick Rivera Antony • Occupation: • Project Manager, Boeing Space Beach • Education • BS, Aerospace Engineering • Career Life • Develops and maintains management system used for organizational oversight, planning and operational assessment

14. Studying Engineering • Math and science favorite subjects • Fascinated by space travel, rockets and airplanes • Earned pilot’s license • Would put more emphasis on non-engineering classes • Be able to communicate effectively, work in teams, and know different aspects of business • More English, Business, and Social Science classes to become a more rounded and more valuable employee

15. Life Outside of Work • Spends time with wife and two children • Studying for a Doctorate degree in Organizational Psychology with emphasis in Change Management. • Enjoys golf, hiking, fishing and biking Horizons Golf Course www.horizons.com

16. Electrical Engineer:Bob Feldmann, St. Louis, MO • Occupation: • Director, Tactical Aircraft Mission Systems, The Boeing Co. • Education: • BSEE, 1976 • MS, Computer Science, 1980 • MBA, 1999 Bob Feldmann www.boeing.com

17. Studying Engineering • Interested in Science, Math was not biggest ambition in life • First programming class in college hooked him on hardware and software for computers • Designed software for flight simulators during college coop • Leads teams of over 800 engineers in design and production of Mission Systems (avionics)

18. Life Outside of Work • Centers on outdoor activities with wife and three sons • Coached sons in soccer and baseball • Enjoys golf and bike riding (to name a few)

19. Mechanical Engineer:Dr. Adel A. Zakaria, Waterloo, IA • Occupation: • Senior VP, Engineering and Manufacturing, Worldwide Agricultural Equipment Division • Education • BSME, Egypt, 1967 • MSIE, 1971 • PhD, Industrial Engineering, 1973 Dr. Adel A. Zakaria www.ecn.purdue.edu

20. Studying Engineering • Grew up in a developing country • Engineering was an instrument for making genuine progress • Interested in how things were made • Coop or summer jobs helpful in getting early exposure and making studies more meaningful and interesting

21. Life Outside of Work • Hobbies are racquetball and photography • Traveled with family to over 30 countries • Active in a number of national engineering societies and community volunteer groups • Hospital board • United Way • Boys and Girls Club

22. Engineering Student:Emery Sanford • Major: • Mechanical Engineering • College: • University of California-Berkeley • University of Sydney-Australia (study abroad)

23. Helpful High School Prep Classes • Math, especially calculus • Prepared for University-level math and engineering courses • Principles of Engineering courses and hands-on case studies • Helped choose the college major

24. College Experiences • Freshmen classes are tough, “A slap in the face” • Figure out own learning style to be comfortable in university classes • Find something to get involved in besides school • Focus only on school will drive you crazy • Find study partners to help solve tough engineering problems • Help you study for exams as well

25. Engineering Student:Colin Quinn • Major: • Mechanical Engineering • College: • University of Wisconsin-Madison • Work Experiences • Coop at Wolf Appliances in Madison, WI with R&D projects

26. Helpful High School Prep Classes • Engineering classes put him ahead up to two years above classmates his first year • Learning and applying the theory in real-world situations is great experience • Composite materials (Materials Science) helped with extracurricular activities in college • Carbon fiber Formula 1 style race cars

27. College Experiences • Hands-on experiences are important • Getting involved with projects is just as important as earning the good grades • Member of the UW Formula SAE team • Has learned many skills not taught in classroom

28. Engineering StudentMike Kahan • Major: • B.S. Computer Science (2003) • M.Eng Computer Science • College • Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

29. Helpful High School Prep Classes • Calculus I and II • Good background for Electrical Engineering Intro • Chemistry and Physics • Prepare for college equivalents • Engineering I, II, and Independent Study • Hands-on tinkering and opened door for wide-range of occupations • High Mileage Vehicle competition • First team exposure dealing with planning, and mechanical engineering

30. College Experiences • Freshmen • Took a lot of catch up time for classes to classmates • Sophomore • Lots of boring work, slept average 4 hours • Junior • Enjoyed better classes and more sleep • Senior • Earned first 4.0 of college career and applied for the Master’s Degree

31. Engineering Student:Gideon Sorkin • Major: • Engineering • No specialization selected as of yet • College: • Brown University • Providence, RI

32. College Experiences • Engineering classes are very insightful • Math and physics applied quickly to engineering curricula • Leaves engineering lectures feeling like he understands the world better than before