My Pathway Experience – Charlize Cruz

My name is Charlize Cruz and I have been attending the School of Engineering and Sciences for the past five years (currently going into my senior year). The main focus at our school is, of course, engineering and sciences. These topics are emphasized through our engineering class (which we take each year), and our integrated units.

Throughout the years, we’ve covered numerous aspects of engineering in particular. In middle school, we were first introduced into this field with a program called C++; with this program, we were able to get great insight into what is expected in real programs. When we got to high school, we ventured into alternative types of engineering. At this point, they allowed us to really integrate our own creativity into our work when given the opportunity to build things of our own designs (such as mini cardboard rockets and makeshift water-wheels). In the next year, we were allowed to incorporate the physical aspect with the programming aspect of engineering with a program called Creo Parametric. With the help of our 3D printers, this program brought our programs to life; we created items such as gears for a clock and medallions.

Pathways have allowed us to experience these rewarding challenges. Throughout the years we’ve not only learned the material taught to us but also what it takes in such learning environments to succeed. With our experiences many of us now know how to apply our creativity and problem-solving skills to real world problems, and may carry what we’ve learned with us for the rest of our lives. For me personally, out of these challenges I’ve learned the importance of cooperation between different teams, attention to detail, and especially what hard work is. I know that I will be able to carry this skill set with me when earning my doctoral degree in the future.