Year-in-Review: Year 2
Nothing could have prepared me for everything that happened in my second year at University of Cincinnati.
I had my first co-op experience in the fall at Lake Shore Cryotronics, a company in Columbus that develops temperature and magnetic sensors and systems for use in research laboratories. I worked in product development for material characterization systems and had the chance to work with a lot of fascinating machines. I led a project focused on a material change for a metal part on the vibrating sample magnetometer, which measures how small samples react to a changing magnet field. I learned more than I ever realized that I would need to know about material science- how heat treatments change material properties, Barkhausen noise, how magnetic fields are changed by the material, and more. I ran testing, analyzed data, designed heat treatment schedules, worked with suppliers, and more. Additionally, I worked on several smaller projects through the course of the semester. I learned about myself and what I wanted from a work environment, and while I am returning to Lake Shore to work remotely for the summer semester, I am considering searching for something new for my next co-op. I’m thinking maybe engineering consulting- the work is always different, there would be the opportunity to apply my planned MBA in the future, and it could offer some of the flexibility that I am looking for in my post-graduation job search. At least it’s a field to consider moving forward, though it may be considerably harder to find my next co-op given the precipitous economic downfall. Still, my experience working at Lake Shore was a positive one that allowed me to get my feet wet in the workforce and try many new things without being completely overwhelmed.
It was back to Cincinnati for spring semester, and while it began somewhat disastrously (major roommate problems resulting in me having to move out of my dorm and into an apartment 3 weeks into the year – have you ever lived with someone who doesn’t clean up anything ever? And steals your toilet paper? I guess she was just preparing for quarantine.), that was nothing compared to what was to come. It always takes me a little while to get settled into a routine, and with the moving around and traveling back to Columbus on the weekends to be able to ride my horse since I chose not to bring him to Cincinnati for the semester, I really wasn’t comfortably in the rhythm of being back in school until about mid-February. So there I was, reconnecting with friends I’d been separated from for eight months, working through a difficult course load, trying to figure out how to manage a committee for Engineers Without Borders, busy around the clock but content with that.
And then it became unavoidable that campus would be shut down to prevent the spread of a global
pandemic, COVID-19. In comparison to the millions falling sick as the virus spread, my problems seem inconsequential, and college students across the country were facing the same ones. I went back to Columbus, completed the semester online (which really is not the same as in-class learning, as hard as my teachers worked), maintained my GPA, and spent the time of uncertainty working at my horse farm. Answers about fall classes, summer co-op, and when things would start to go back to normal were slow to come and inconsistent when they did. It still feels like the world is on fire all around us. It is a helpless feeling; one I would love to say I will never have to experience again.
But that is not how the world works. Spring semester of 2020 was a horrible way to remind us all of that, but
it was a wake-up call. We are in college to prepare to make our mark on society. It’s up to this generation to make the changes that the world needs. I don’t know what is in store for us, but I do know we are ready to make our stand.