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| On the top of a mountain in Peru |
Hey girls. I’m Maria and I’m entering my last semester at
Penn State. I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not an outgoing person.
But I doubt any of y’all will ever see that. It’s because WEP is a
comfort zone for me. But it wasn’t always that way.
I came from a small, private, all-girls high school - 83 in my graduating class. I was a little hesitant to go to such a big school and not know anyone. By participating in WEPO, I met friends who are still my friends today (and this is my 5th WEPO since I was a participant in 2008). WEP quickly became my comfort zone at school.
But I wanted to meet people who weren’t engineers. So I went to the activities fair in the HUB during the first week of classes and joined a few clubs. While the clubs I have been involved in have changed, it has been easier to step outside my comfort zone and into something new each time because I have done it before.
I guess my biggest piece of advice is don’t be afraid to try something new. Go ahead and step outside your comfort zone. I am currently on co-op with Dow Chemical. I am in Freeport, TX which is 1,611 miles from home. Would you think I would be comfortable here? Well, I am. But I wouldn’t have known that had I not been sent here last summer (yes, this is my 2nd summer here).
Looking back over the past 4 years, there is so much I would have missed out on had I not stepped out of my comfort zone and had a positive attitude. Those experiences have made Penn State what it is for me and I don’t want y’all to miss out on them because you are unsure. So when someone asks you if you want to do something, just smile and go along with it, you never know where it might lead.
I came from a small, private, all-girls high school - 83 in my graduating class. I was a little hesitant to go to such a big school and not know anyone. By participating in WEPO, I met friends who are still my friends today (and this is my 5th WEPO since I was a participant in 2008). WEP quickly became my comfort zone at school.
But I wanted to meet people who weren’t engineers. So I went to the activities fair in the HUB during the first week of classes and joined a few clubs. While the clubs I have been involved in have changed, it has been easier to step outside my comfort zone and into something new each time because I have done it before.
I guess my biggest piece of advice is don’t be afraid to try something new. Go ahead and step outside your comfort zone. I am currently on co-op with Dow Chemical. I am in Freeport, TX which is 1,611 miles from home. Would you think I would be comfortable here? Well, I am. But I wouldn’t have known that had I not been sent here last summer (yes, this is my 2nd summer here).
Looking back over the past 4 years, there is so much I would have missed out on had I not stepped out of my comfort zone and had a positive attitude. Those experiences have made Penn State what it is for me and I don’t want y’all to miss out on them because you are unsure. So when someone asks you if you want to do something, just smile and go along with it, you never know where it might lead.
Maria is a fifth year senior in Mechanical Engineering. This summer she is working for DOW Chemical in Freeport, TX. Maria is a mentor for WEPO 2012.
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