One Step at a Time (9/14-9/20)

This week in ISM we peer-reviewed each other's résumés as well as undertook a third research assessment. With the experience I accumulated from the previous two research assessments I accomplished, the third research assessment benefited me to a significant degree. From my prior understanding of the value of technical skills in the field of aerospace engineering, I didn’t think that communications would play such a key role in moving projects forward. While I already knew that being able to communicate concepts is an essential skill in engineering as a field in general, I learned that oral and written communications in the professional workplace have a certain set of norms that entry-level engineers tend to be ignorant of. Due to my lack of inexperience, I am not aware of what these rules are, but I am sure that if I enlist the help of my mentor, I will be more prepared to climb the career ladder than the average aspiring engineer. Speaking of communication, the concept of written technical communications was another discovery I made: a particular form of writing that allows engineers to get their point across concisely. It is notably different from the style of writing that I am acquainted with in my literature classes so I will have to put in the time and effort to seek out how to develop a proficiency in it. While I did get a great insight into the professional field from reading this article, from here on I need to focus on realizing what I would like to do for my original work in the next few research assessments. The article I annotated for my third research assessment actually gave me an idea of what I could do, however much more research will be needed to transform it into something I can pride myself on. While I have identified that I am more interested in the conceptual design portion of the aerospace engineering field, I still need to consider what I will be doing in college to pave my path to greatness. I will take my time, one step at a time, until I find what I am looking for.