The Engineering Experience

Purdue students at a Black Lives Matter March     On March 13th 2020, Breonna Taylor, a 26-year old Black woman and emergency medical technician from Louisville, was shot five times and killed by police officers in her own home. On October 9th 2020, I attended a socially-distanced candlelight vigil for the late Breonna Taylor, organized by the Black Students Union. Students came from all corners of campus to gather outside of Class of 1950 and honor the memory of Breonna Taylor. Brave Black men and women stood at the center of the crowd to speak, sing, and recite poems. Every single word they delivered echoed their passion for attaining justice for Breonna Taylor as well as their sympathy for the hardships the Black community, especially Black women and transgender women, face in this country everyday. Finally, they handed out candles to the crowd and we had a moment of silence for Breonna Taylor.        This event was incredibly moving, well orga...

When exploring the option of pursuing a bachelor’s degree in engineering, many often assume that means working in industry for an indefinite amount of time after those four years of college. However, an engineering degree is an amazing gateway to a multitude of different careers. Of course, working in industry is a common and great choice for many, but there are other potential career paths, including a higher education in research (i.e. PhD), professional careers in medicine and law, and working in more business-related roles that engineering students follow.  Me and fellow LT Madeleine walking through Engineering Mall Kat Kerr, a junior studying Biomedical Engineering, chose engineering as a route to pursue a higher education in research, and has been participating in undergraduate research since her freshman year. She says, “I chose BME for graduate school because of the abundance of interesting research being conducted. Being able to take classes as an undergrad and seeing the ...