Far From the Stars (9/7-9/13)

I found the two assignments we had to complete this week in ISM especially helpful in my conquest of the stars: creating the rough draft of my résumé as well as my second research assessment. I already happened to have completed a résumé earlier during the summer and my basic knowledge on the matter of creating a résumé paid off, but as I was revising my original résumé to match the expectations provided to us, questions began to form in my head. As an aspiring high school aerospace engineer with an above average understanding of the field, I am well aware that recruiters in the field seek individuals with hard skills, work experience, and accomplishments in major projects. I would say that my hard skills and accomplishments are about average for a typical high school student who plans on majoring in engineering in college, while my hands-on experience is extensive due to four years of Project Lead the Way engineering courses. However, how can a high schooler like myself achieve and develop my hard skills while at home? The internet possesses a plethora of information on what I can do to improve myself, but I would like to learn from reliable sources - a issue I should bring up to my mentor that surely will benefit me in the future. Speaking of the future, the second research assessment gave me an insight into the basics of the aerospace industry. I learned from my mistake in the first research assessment where I chose too specific of an article and selected an article that turned the gears in my head. While the article itself had information that I was mostly familiar with, there were a few parts that prompted me to think about my own perspective on the field of aerospace engineering. To be specific, I was wondering about the technical aspects of creativity, essential knowledge, and communication skills. Creativity in particular is not a skill that can be replicated or developed as easily as any other skill in the world which is why it is so sought after in every field of work - so how does one further cultivate creativity? There is no set solution for developing creativity, but my logic told me that practicing engineering problems could help me gain a practical mindset for future assignments. I think that it is a topic that I definitely should bring up to my mentor and will put me a step ahead of my competition. At the moment, there is still a significant distance between me and my dream, but I hope by the end of this first semester that I will have made a concrete step forward.