From working on a business idea with help from professors, student teaching at Newton North High School, and teaming up to create a budgeting app for young adults, this past semester at Olin College of Engineering has pushed me to expand my interests and broaden my knowledge into new fields.

In one of my favorite classes to date, “User Experience Design,” I worked with a team to design and build an app to help young adults establish positive budgeting habits. This class allowed me to design for complex engineering problems with a direct, people-oriented goal. My team had to find a group of individuals for whom we could design a product, track the product’s development, and collect data in real time to determine how well the product of our engineering research was working. The activity was an incredible opportunity - one of many I have received through Olin’s design-based courses.

In addition to various engineering projects, my student teaching experience through a class at Wellesley College has allowed me to work alongside a mentor teacher to observe classes, teach lessons and engage with students.

During my upcoming, final semester of junior year, I plan on finishing the requirements for my Electrical and Computer Engineering degree, refining my business plan, and continuing to explore new opportunities - ones I could never have imagined myself having if I did not end up being able to go to Olin College of Engineering through the support of my community, friends, family, and the generosity of MVYouth.