The Engineering Experience

Posted on September 11, 2014 by LilyAnn Peterson Gapinski         You have probably heard by now that next week on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday something pretty big is happening here at Purdue, and that thing is IR. Purdue’s Industrial Roundtable (IR) is one of the largest student-run job fairs in the country, and it continues to grow each and every year. This year, over 400 companies will be attending looking to fill internship, Co-Op, and full-time positions.          Because of IR’s size and reputation, it can be pretty intimidating your first year. A lot of freshmen think that it isn’t worth it to attend IR, because they cannot possibly compete with students older and more experienced than them, but that is not the case. Yes, it is more difficult to obtain an internship or Co-Op position as a freshman, but it is definitely not impossible. Some companies even specifically aim to hire freshmen.  I know many people who were able to get internships for the summer after their f

Posted on September 9, 2014 by Ashley Devore Hello everyone, hope everyone is having a fantastic week! School is in full swing, and so many exciting things are going on! Here at Purdue University, organization callouts are in full swing; there is just so much going on! One really awesome group that I am in is the Women in Engineering Program’s (WIEP) Undergraduate Mentoring Program – called Mentors and Mentees (M&M). We just had our first meeting today and it was awesome!                M&M connects older girls in engineering with younger girls in engineering. In each mentoring pair there is the mentor, the older girl, and the mentee, the younger girl.  Mentors are typically upperclassman, but sophomores can choose to be a mentor if they would like to as well. Mentees are freshmen and sophomores. The mentoring program participants meet once a month at monthly meetings, and pairs meet up once a week on their own. In addition, the program also holds social events such as

Posted on September 2, 2014 by Catherine Courchaine This summer I had the amazing opportunity to study abroad in Spain. It was my first experience traveling outside of the United States, but I can assure you it won't be my last! Although I devote most of my time to my Aeronautical Engineering degree, I have also been working on a Spanish minor. Languages have always been a passion of mine, and when I came to college I knew I would be continuing the Spanish classes that I had begun in high school. One great opportunity that Purdue offers is the chance to test into an upper level language course. By taking an entrance assessment, I was able to get a head start on my Spanish career at Purdue. After several semesters, I decided to finish the required courses for my major abroad.