Elevate Your Future

Transcript

Illinois Tech is big on experiences. It takes them so seriously that Illinois Tech guarantees all students, internships, research projects, and other awesome ends on experiences through its one of a kind Elevate Program. Seth, a mechanical engineering major, had a life changing internship at NASA and he’s participating in Illinois Tech accelerated master’s program, which allows him to earn both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in as few as five years, that is amazing. Seth, please take it away.

– Thank you Alex. Hey everyone. There were two things that set me on the path of becoming an engineer, reading comics with my father and my AP physics class. Both inspired me to make a change using both math and science. I transferred to Illinois Tech as an third year and immediately join student organizations. I found my closest friends in the National Society of Black Engineers in the Black Student Union. Now I serve as a student leader, helping those who are once in my shoes adjust. Student leadership has been an amazing experience for me. Seeing students make new friends and having a good time fosters a sense of family within the university. As a leader, the students I help continue to push me to be better. My peers inspired me to apply for the accelerated master’s program. This gave me an opportunity for an internship at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, working on an interplanetary space flight mission. Working at JPL was a dream come true, and it wouldn’t have been possible without the help of my student orgs. My time at NASA and as a student leader have grown my technical and interpersonal abilities far more than I could imagine. I’m truly grateful to the school and the student that have helped me pave my way to a successful future. I’ve been blessed with an opportunity to further my education to the fullest. The accelerated master’s program made my internship possible, the student community helped me adjust and become a great leader, and the faculty helped me find my passion. Thanks to the combination of these experiences, I’m confident that I have what it takes to elevate my future. That’s me in a nutshell, over to you, Alex.

– That is so cool Seth. It’s truly amazing how many experiential opportunities you’ll find at Illinois Tech from internships to student groups and team projects. What’s more, you don’t have to wait. You can begin taking part in them in your very first year. Like Seth, this sets you up for even more hands on upper opportunities down the road. Talk about paying it forward for yourself, cheers Seth.