Momentum - October 2020 - Cover3

CAreer Path
Do you have any advice to offer to
students?
Communication, presence, and balance
are key within teams, especially within
our newly remote environment. It is
relatively easy to get lost within the
complexity of today's projects, as their
size continue to increase. By
communicating and staying involved, a
sense of dedication to the team is
represented, and you are able to build
relationships with others within your
work area. You are not expected to
know how to complete every task
assigned; rather, you are expected to tap
into resources and perspectives that
guide you to successfully complete the
task. Remember, when a task seems too
difficult, break it down and find the
balance between self-efforts and
collaborative efforts.
Texas A&M's AutoDrive Challenge team posing at closing ceremonies of AutoDrive Challenge Year 2.

What do you like to do for fun?

given the opportunity to work for his
team at Intel for a summer internship.
Because of him, creating opportunities
for current students is a passion of mine,
as my goal is to enable those around me
to achieve their highest potential. My
long-term ambition is to become a
distinguished engineer, having worked
on impactful projects that allow me the
ability to create opportunities for others
in the future.

My work environment keeps me at my
desk for most of the day, so staying
active to maintain a healthy mental state
is a must for me. I take advantage of
extra time by focusing on myself
mentally and physically through reading
books, relaxing with family and friends,
and spending time at the gym. A stress
reliever I utilize quite a bit is to simply be
active and walk outside, which allows
me to take a step back from my current
situation and evaluate decisions with a
clear mind. One of my more recent goals
is to travel more often. n

How did your involvement in SAE
prepare you for the workforce?
During my junior and senior year, I
participated in the SAE AutoDrive
Challenge, a competition among eight
universities with a task to create a selfdriving vehicle. This program was the
first project that allowed me to
showcase the skills learned in the
classroom and apply them to a realworld interdisciplinary problem. My
involvement with the team at Texas A&M
was a truly defining experience and
reinforced my decision to become a
software engineer. I began by
developing a vehicle simulator and
transitioned into working on the CAN
Bus system, which is responsible for
executing commands to operate the

MOMENTUM

vehicle's controls. I wrote software to
fully operate the Chevy Bolt EV with a
PlayStation controller, then extended
the system to be controlled
autonomously. After the first year, I
became the team's project manager and
lead, an experience that has led me to
pursue business administration in
conjunction with my technical
background. The AutoDrive Challenge
provided me with a head start into
valuable industry experience and
brought me one step further in my
career path.

Presenting findings to
a panel of judges at
AutoDrive Challenge
Year 1, the judges
being engineers from
various self-driving
car companies.

October 2020 21

Momentum - October 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Momentum - October 2020