A little about me and my journey to here…
Before this program I was a Mechanical Engineer. In fact, I even got my first degree from Oregon State in spring 2020 (terrible time to graduate by the way). I had been considering a switch to Software Engineering while I was still a student the first time around, especially after I took an introductory course in Python. At the time however, I fell victim to the classic sunk-cost fallacy and decided to stick with my current path at the time since I only had about a year of school left and had already completed both of my MECOP internships.
My first and only job as a Mechanical Engineer was at a small manufacturing company in Tualatin. After a few months there, I was tasked with a project that required the use of Python and SQL to create a dashboard application. After the success of that project, I was tasked with more and more Software projects which fed my desire to pursue a career in Software. Finally, in 2022, I signed up for the Post-Bacc program at OSU and didn’t look back.
It was difficult getting back into the student mindset, especially since I continued to work full time as a Mechanical Engineer for the first 3 terms, but I knew what I wanted and I had my eye on the prize. The payoff finally began this summer when I landed an internship with Walmart Global Tech in none other than Silicon Valley. It was an extremely eye opening experience. Aside from learning Java, Elasticsearch, and in general how to be a team member on an Agile team, I realized how much I still have to learn. Obviously I knew that I would not be an effective Software Engineer right out of the gate after taking just a few terms of class, but my level of confusion at many of the technical conversations that where being had was both intimidating and exciting. I say exciting because I know that if I continue to challenge myself and develop my skills, I will have the same technical level of understanding as many, if not most of the engineers that made up my team.
As I begin my final term of the program, I know it will be a tough as I push through my last 4 classes, but I am excited to finally be out working and learning in the field. Soon, I will be able to put all that I’ve learned to the test in an industry I have been wanting to be a part of for so long.
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