Summer Experience-An AutoMAZING Summer

This post is in a series about RPI SWE members and their experiences in industry and research over the summer! Check out all the posts to learn more about what our members achieved this summer!

An AutoMAZING Summer

By: Sarah Straub, Materials Engineering '16

After having received an offer for a summer research fellowship at UIC, I had planned on working in Chicago this past summer. As an undergraduate with only one year under of higher education my belt, I felt extremely lucky to have a job in materials research. This entire plan was derailed by one phone call over Spring Break.

This random phone call was from an HR representative at Honda R&D Americas. My resume, which I had given to recruiter at the fall NSBE/SHEP Career Fair had somehow ended up on her desk. She wanted me to fly to Ohio for an interview with a group from the Materials Research division!

After having completed my interview and waiting over a month, I was surprised to be offered a position. I considered my options, and because I have little interest in pursuing academia beyond undergraduate, my decision was clear. I was going to Ohio for the summer!

My experience this summer was unlike anything I would have imagined. As an intern of the Chemical Group, my projects focused on corrosion, adhesives, and paints of the newest cars (including the beautiful Acura NSX). Along with assorted testing responsibilities, my group leader delegated to me a project to investigate the curing mechanism of wind shield adhesives. This study, which I was lucky to own from start to end, turned out successfully and I had the opportunity to present my findings to the supplier of the material. My other main project was a study that involved electrochemical corrosion testing with a potentiostat.

While I had not realized it at first, it is now clear that I am very interested in corrosion engineering.

This summer, I had the opportunity to develop skills in experimental design, test matrix development, experimentation methods and data analysis. More important than what I learned from materials research, however, was what I learned about myself by living on my own in a new and unfamiliar place. There is no question that I had a great experience and that I grew a great deal over what seemed to be a very short summer.

As a result of this experience, I am now working with Dr. David Duquette of the MSE department on corrosion and electrochemical research. My advice to anyone who is interested  in interning, is to pursue every option, to take chances and to be in the driver’s seat of your career from the start!