An Assignment of Lessons For a Journey’s Success: Reflection Essay
The real world seems like a place that is familiar to all of us, we believe that we see it every day. However, in the world we see in it coexists with the corporate world. It’s either avoided by some or unbeknownst to many. The corporate world can be unforgiving if you are unprepared for it, but can be rewarding in many ways when you are. For that reason, I believe this Writing For Engineers course was very beneficial. It provided plenty of projects that involved deadlines, team building, and cognitive tests of information imitating the demands of the real corporate world.
The Resume, and Cover Letter assignment proved imperative for pursuing a job in my field of interest. This was a great opportunity to update my Resume with skills, experiences, qualities, and educational background. Being guided on how to format the Cover Letter in a way that was organized and direct allowed me to present myself as a suitable candidate in the eyes of the employer. A great way for the Cover Letter to stand out is by implementing the technique of including some of the words/phrases found under the job description. This emphasizes your qualifications and aligns them with the qualifications the job is looking for. This assignment helped me implement concise writing techniques, and create an organized inventory of skills, and qualities.
Then came the Dice Probability Assignment. This was when Two Part Titles were implemented, as well as the search for academic sources. Researching academic sources allowed me to improve the way I analyze information and organize citations. Experimenting with dice probability was interesting, I created my graph in Excel displaying probability per trial in comparison to the resource trials. These graphs had been referenced within the text using an appendix and titled images which provided clarity in my research. Creating an abstract summarizing experiments and results helped familiarize me with the procedures necessary to complete such an assignment.
The next assignment, Group Proposal, incorporated group/team organization and collaboration. It was very engaging and allowed me to get more familiarized with the people in the class and on campus. In addition to building further relationships specifically with the people on my team. This proposal demanded creativity, having to work under a given budget to provide for the audience of CCNY’s (City College of New York) Student Center needs. Proposing this project was interesting, it involved detailed reading up on other college student centers and how they accommodate their student life. What I learned and the experience gained from working in a team is something I can implement later on in my career.
Last but not least, the Technical Description. This assignment was one of my favorites. It allowed me to create a presentation on the topic of my choosing while increasing my knowledge of Mechanical Engineering. It was a great way to test the overall improvements I’ve made in presenting to an audience. The difference between this and other assignments is that it was more hands-on, with cutting out paper, writing, and coloring. Completing this assignment gave me a new passion for pursuing a sub-category in my major containing not only combustion engines but also electric motors.
All in all, the Writing for Engineering course is vital for the preparation for the real corporate world. It’s meant to promote time management with deadlines that must be met. There is a sense of accountability that’s put on each student to complete each assignment at high standards. At times we were put in uncomfortable situations to which we had to learn to adjust to flourish. All to prepare us for the real world that holds to key to our success.
