“As an engineer, my job is to create solutions that improve people’s livelihoods. By using virtual reality to make training and conferences more accessible, I hope that the employees using such technologies can therefore be more available to the people in their lives they care about, especially their families.”
Clubs and activities: Tau Beta Pi, Stand-Up Comedy Seminar, Students for Life, STA Student Community, SPIT Lab, SCOTTIE Lab, Juggling Club, Ultimate Club, Hackathon Club, Habitat for Humanity, intramurals
Valuable hands-on learning experience: Taking a virtual reality independent study during my first semester at Iowa State. I approached a professor after his talk at Destination Iowa State, and later that week, I got a tour of their project at the Virtual Reality Applications Center (VRAC). This led to joining a research team and accessing several opportunities: part-time jobs, recommendation letters, and work experience in a pretty specialized field.
Most influential mentor: This was a hard question to answer since I’ve been surrounded by many awesome mentors, but if I need to choose a single one, I would say the most impactful was Elizabeth Shirtcliff, professor of human development and family studies. She was the lead professor of the research lab I joined and is responsible for many of the opportunities I’ve enjoyed. Dr. Shirtcliff made the research experience less daunting and motivated all of us to excellence.
Best memory: I would say one of my top Iowa State memories was tenting outside Jack Trice Stadium for the CyHawk football game. We got to Jack Trice almost 20 hours before game time and ended up with front-row seats to the game. We took our shirts off, put body paint on, and eventually made it on the ISU football hype video!
Plans for after graduation: I am super excited to work full-time at Zirous, a tech firm in Des Moines, where I interned last summer. During my internship, we created a virtual reality office tour. When I return to work full-time, I look forward to joining the new XR division as we continue to create virtual reality and augmented reality products.
Making my mark on the world: As an engineer, my job is to create solutions that improve people’s livelihoods. By using virtual reality to make training and conferences more accessible, I hope that the employees using such technologies can therefore be more available to the people in their lives they care about, especially their families.
Engineering like a Cyclone Engineer: It means adding a personal, human touch to every project you make. Behind every computer program, there is a programmer, and since the project classes at Iowa State give you significant freedom in the program, I think the programmers’ personality shines through in their work. In addition to being creative, Cyclone Engineers are very motivated people. Most of the people I know have a few side projects in addition to their classes, whether that is one of Iowa State’s 800+ clubs, involvement in research, or starting a business!