Oh, the Places You’ll Go

Engineering will gain you respect from your peers and job offers when you graduate. Especially by being an involved woman in this challenging field. But more importantly, in my opinion, is all the places you’ll get to go and the people you’ll get to meet through your involvement in engineering. Let me take you on just one path – my own – and how it has opened my eyes to the world.

Hiking North and South Arapahoe
Mountains near Boulder, June 2012

Internships. Not only will you gain valuable real-world experience, but you’ll also get to explore another part of the country. Take advantage of securing internships/co-ops across the country (or even world!) because it will teach you so much more about yourself. There are limited times post-college where a company will pay YOU to fly across the country. Seriously, I urge you to go out of your comfort zone. It’s only 3 months.

1. Erie, PA – summer 2010
2. Seattle, WA – summer 2011
3. Boulder, CO – summer 2012

SWE members enjoying the
Chicago lakeside, October 2011

Organizations: Society of Women Engineers. What’s the next best thing besides WEP?! SWE!!! You will gain an even greater network of familiar faces and immense opportunities. By getting involved and taking a leadership role you have the chance to go to the Annual Conference – held in a different city each year. These conferences bring together some of the brightest and most driven women I have ever met. You will be inspired and feel like you can change the world too.

1. Orlando, FL – October 2010
2. Chicago, IL – October 2011
3. Houston, TX – November 2012

EAs with our advisor Melissa Marshall standing
in a Pratt engine in Hartford, March 2012

Organizations: Engineering Ambassadors. Through EA, I have had the chance to inspire other with engineering messages across the state of Pennsylvania through presentations and activities. I even was able to attend a leadership workshop from United Technologies Corporation where several schools from the East Coast came together to share ideas and insights.

1. Hartford, CT – March 2012
2. Numerous cities in PA from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia – school year of 2011-12

The students of ELDM in Budapest,
May 2012

Minors: Engineering Leadership Development Minor. Many minors will give you the option to travel. I say take advantage of adding some uniqueness to your resume with a minor and a splash of traveling as well! Personally, ELDM has brought me to places in the world I never even knew about before. By being emerged in a foreign culture you start to appreciate the vastness of the world and the differences between countries.

1. Budapest, Hungary – May 2012
2. Rabat, Morocco – March 2013

Carlye Lauff is a senior in Mechanical Engineering. This summer Carlye is working for Ball Aerospace in Boulder, CO. She is the Design Lead for WEPO 2012.